Red Thread
by Typetypetype
Summary: Their fates were joined together by a red thread from the moment they were born. Naruto and Sasuke were missing a member because of the insufficient number of academy graduates. Fate brought Sakura to them on their first C-rank mission out of the village. Who is she? How will she change Team Kakashi. Romantic Action. Prequel of 'A New Adventure with an Old Team'
1. Sakura Encounter

**Hi guys! I've come back to reupload this after I made some changes. It's not that big of a change, nothing that affects the sequel plots drastically. So it's up to you guys whether you want to re-read it or not :D As for the new readers, HI! Please enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto**

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**Sakura Encounter**

Sasuke and Naruto graduated from the academy, but they were placed in a team that only consist of two Genin and a Jonin, because the academy didn't have enough graduates to form full three man cells, one of the teams had to have a missing member, at least until the next batch of students graduate.

They were doing their first mission that includes leaving the village, Naruto was ranting on how boring his missions as a ninja is, just chasing cats, walking dogs, gardening and many more chores, Sasuke couldn't agree more, but of course, he didn't say anything.

Finally the Hokage gave in, he sent Naruto and Sasuke to a C-rank mission, they were suppose to pose as a bridge master's bodyguard to the Land of Waves.

Members of Team 7….

Name: Uchiha Sasuke

Personality: Cold, Mature, Mysterious, Serious

Hobbies: Unknown…

Dislikes: Naruto, Annoying fangirls, etc

Likes: Fighting

Dream: To surpass his brother

Life: Uchiha Sasuke was 6 year old when his parents were sent out to the battlefield a never returned, he is now an orphan along with his brother, Uchiha Itachi, They live in the Uchiha head mansion, his brother is now leader of the clan and also the ANBU leader of squad 3, he lived a pretty bad childhood, many were slaughtered in front of him, his whole clan was nearly wiped out, due to their superior skills and man power, the Uchihas are usually sent to high ranking missions, some never returned. The young Sasuke was left alone in the mansion that had a special barrier, preventing any unauthorized or non-Uchiha from entering, His parents set it up to protect him before they were killed, once they were killed the barrier automatically dispelled, leaving him unprotected and vulnerable….

6 years ago…

_It was raining heavily when the seals that were placed on the ground around the Uchiha manor exploded in flames. Inside the building, a little boy's eyes widened. The Uchiha shinobi that were close by, noticed that the barrier their leader and his wife set up to protect their son were dispelled. _

_"What happened?" _

_"The barrier...!" _

_"The chief, you don't think he's-" the man was cut off. _

_"Don't say that!" the woman interupted. _

_A 6 year old Sasuke had hear everything, he was leaning against the wooden fence separates the manor and the outside world. His hands clenched in fists and he pushed himself off the fence and snuck out of the manor, nobody had noticed him, thankfully. He ran in search of his parents, he turned at the next alley. He witnessed his own people get slaughtered, The battle was fierce and one man was left standing, too bad it wasn't an ally. Sasuke's feet were rooted to the bloodstained ground. The man lifted his head and revealed his crazed black eyes he had shoulder length silver hair that were soaked with blood at the end, he chuckled and took a step towards Sasuke, who instinctively took a step back but that was all he could manage. _

_When Sasuke thought it was the end of him, someone grabbed the enemy's ankle and stopped his movements. "Run... Sasuke-bochama" _

_Sasuke blinked and snapped out of it as he could recognize the voice. It was his eldest friend, the one that kept him company while his parents were away and Itachi were busy. He served under the Uchiha Main Family for years, he taught Sasuke how to use a kunai, and the seals to use fire jutsus. _

_"Run!" The voice cut itself into Sasuke's mind, snapping Sasuke out of his trance. Sasuke turned and started running, but not before he witnessed the murder of his loyal friend. Tears were rolling down Sasuke's cheeks like rain. If he'd just stay down... he would've lived. But he chose to save him and inform the enemy that he wasn't dead. Sasuke was still clutching on to the kunai, he didn't dare look back to check whether the man was pursuing him or not. The streets were totally free of people, had everyone been wiped out already? Sasuke shook that thought from his head and turned at the next corner. _

_A dead end. _

_He quickly turned back, but it was too late. He was cornered like a mouse in a lion's cave, his hands trembled as he held his kunai. He threw off any hesitation he had, it's do or die now. He spread his feet and got ready for the silver haired invader. The man charged, Sasuke gritted his teeth. A katana came down on him. _

_Metal clashed with metal. _

_"Nii-san...!" Sasuke's eyes widened at the sight of his brother,12 year old Itachi blocked off the katana with a kunai. He looked over his shoulder to look at his little brother. "Are you alright? Sasuke" he asked. Sasuke nodded slowly. Itachi turned back "Stand back" Itachi said. Sasuke, still holding onto the kunai, stepped back. _

_"Who are you" the silver haired man asked arrogantly, irritated at the sudden intrusion. Itachi's sharingan activated, she scowled at the enemy. Almost immediately, the enemy's eyes turned from craving to kill to fear for his life. "U-Uchiha-" He blinked and the next thing he knew, he was bleeding to death. "Itachi" he said before the life disappeared from his eyes. _

_Itachi walked to his brother, the kunai used to kill the man was still in his hand. "Sasuke... why did yo leave the manor" Itachi said sternly. "Because... father and mother... they're..." Sasuke looked down, not even bothering to stop his tears. Itachi dropped his kunai and fell to his knees and hugged his brother. Sasuke buried his face into his brother's shoulder, Itachi's hand moved to his brother's hand and made him let go of kunai. "Your time isn't now, Sasuke" Itachi muttered. _

_Later that night, Itachi brought Sasuke back to the manor and remade the barrier, though it wasn't as strong as their parent's it was good enough to keep Sasuke safe. _

_Sasuke hid in the closet of his parent's room, trying to hide from the terrorized screams, the sounds of metal clashing, the feeling of losing everyone that was just smiling to you yesterday. Sasuke didn't cry, neither did he sleep. _

_"Sasuke!"_

_Sasuke's head rose slowly to meet his brother's eyes, he looked pretty beaten up and tired. Sasuke snickered, "W-What's so funny" said Itachi. "Had trouble looking for me?" Sasuke mocked. A faint blush tainted Itachi's cheeks, a jounin having trouble looking for a boy in a closet. This pride had been stained "S-Shut up, I'm just exhausted from the fight" he said, settling himself down next to Sasuke. And that was the last peaceful moment the brother have had together._

_End of past vision…_

Next Member…

Name: Uzumaki Naruto

Personality: Hyperactive, Caring, Stubborn, Playful, Rude, Noisy, Hot tempered.

Hobbies: Training.

Likes: Cup Ramen

Dislikes: Having to wait 3 minutes after you pour the hot water into the ramen cup

Dream: To become the greatest Hokage.

Life: Born as an orphan, Naruto grew up not knowing his parents. He was treated like an outcast by the village. The third hokage forbade anyone to speak of the nine-tailed beast that lies in Naruto. All information on his parents were kept from him just as the fact that a legendary beast had been sealed in him. No one was to know that the very man who saved the village 12 years ago was Naruto's father.

_Everyday of Naruto's life. _

_He walked through the streets of Konoha, everyone got out of his way when he passed. He received the cold glares of the villagers. But Naruto's cheeky grin didn't leave his face for a step, he refused to show any signs of weakness around the people that seemed to hate his guts for no reason. _

_"Monster" _

_"Filthy beast boy" _

_"He shouldn't have been born" _

_"Stay away from him...!" _

_"He's a demon in disguise" _

_In Naruto's point of view, he was just a normal orphan boy trying to make friends and have people acknowledge his existence. But to everyone else, he would always cast the shadow of the beast that had wrecked Konoha and stole the lives of their beloved. But no matter what everyone thought, Naruto was going to show them. "I'm gonna become Hokage one day!" _

End of Introduction…

"Finally a mission where it doesn't include chasing stupid cats around the village" shouted Naruto as he reached the gate.

"Do you have to be this loud" a toneless voice said the footsteps halted at the gate

"Sasuke! Teme! You are such a boring piece of turd!"

"I'd rather be a boring piece of turd than be as annoying as you"

"Hmph! I can't believe a genius like me got teamed up with a bastard like you" huffed Naruto, crossing his arms.

You could actually see the electricity from the tension of their glares to one another, till Kakashi came walking in with the Bridge master, Tazuna.

"You're late again Kakashi-sensei!" shouted Naruto, shifting his glare to Kakashi-sensei.

"Ah, my bad, my bad" he said, scratching his head.

"I asked for shinobi and all I get are two brats that barely look like ninja, especially that stupid looking one" said Tazuna, gulping down a mouthful of sake.

"Ahahahaha! Sasuke, he just called you stupid looking." Said Naruto, laughing.

Everyone just sighed.

Before anyone could say anything, Kakashi cut in "Tazuna-san, I can assure you that these boys are more than capable of protecting you from bandits and besides, I'm a jounin, so there's nothing to worry about" he said as Naruto beamed with pride. "Let's go let's go let's go!" he shouted, pumping a fist in the air.

"Idiot…." muttered Sasuke, under his breath.

Kakashi sighed, it was tiresome being the jounin of a hyperactive powerhouse and an emotionless ice cube. He began to regret making the decision to pass this team.

The team travelled on foot for the whole day, and stopped to set camp for the day since the harbor was still another day's walk from where they were and it was too risky to travel at night when they're easily targeted.

"Awww…. We didn't cover as much distance as I expected us to" whined Naruto. "Cause you kept stopping every few minutes and throwing your kunai at some random direction" said Sasuke, leaning against the tree.

"It's called intuition, Sasuke, you need to learn to be more careful" said Naruto. "Naruto you nearly killed a rabbit, what did it ever do to you" said Kakashi. "To you it's a fluffy creature of nature, but to me it's a beast in the making. One day it's going to grow fangs and bite you in the ass, Kakashi-sensei. Be thankful that my intuition was there to save your asses." said Naruto. "No, it's called stupidity and I don't think they have a cure for that" Sasuke added.

"Bastard!" shouted Naruto, as he charges at Sasuke then he rammed into the tree that he was leaning on. He rubbed his nose in pain then looked up and glared at Sasuke who just raised his eyebrows in boredom.

Then Sasuke suddenly took out a kunai and went into an offensive stance, Naruto looked puzzled "Oh! You wanna fight now, huh. I'll take you on anytime" said Naruto, reaching for a kunai. "Sshh, be quiet for a while, Naruto" said Kakashi

"What?" said Naruto, turning his head to face Kakashi, who looked too serious to be joking."What's going on…..?" said Naruto, looking as confused as Tazuna.

Suddenly they could hear metal clashing and a man voice "Come back to the master obediently, Little twit!" Naruto gasped "There's a fight going on" he pulled out a kunai and ran after Sasuke and Kakashi who were already running to the direction of noise.

They came to a clearing where a the battle was taking place, it was a fight between a big sized man with a huge sword and a small fragile figure, her head hung low and she was wearing a khaki colored hood that reached down and covered down to her elbows, when she moved they noticed that she was wearing a plain white sleeveless dress that ended slightly above her knee. The hood obstructed their view of her appearance but they could tell by her body build that she could be no older than Naruto and Sasuke.

Naruto tried to come out of hiding and help the girl but he was stopped by Kakashi, Naruto looked at him and he just shook his head.

"She's wounded" Naruto whispered harshly

Then Kakashi glanced at the female figure and noticed a brownish red stain of blood on the left side of her waist. It looked like a wound that was inflicted recently since it was still bleeding. They could see a red trail of blood rolling down her left thigh and down her leg before dripping onto the ground. Her only weapon was a kunai with a red string tied on the finger hole, and she was barefoot. They heard someone approaching from behind and they turned around, just to see Tazuna walking towards them with a sheet of newspaper in hand.

"Get down, old man" whispered Naruto.

Tazuna just nodded and did as he said.

The battle didn't last very long. The fragile looking girl turned out to be exceptionally skilled. The girl charged at the man first, the man made his move by swinging his oversized blade sideways at her, she disappeared at the last minute. He looked around for her, when she never left his side. He looked up at his huge blade, he caught a glimpse of her before he had his skull bashed open by a fatal kick. The girl flipped and landed behind him.

The man cried out in pain, he dropped his blade and clutched his face. Slowly, he turned to the girl, who was standing sideways facing him. She threw up her kunai and caught it's tip, she drew it back and it brushed her left shoulder before she threw it at the man. Taking out one of his knees. She ran at him and pulled out the kunai then stabbed his other knee, making him completely disabling his movements. He thrashed around with one arm as the other hand held his head in pain.

The girl avoided his random but violent swings, she was behind him in seconds. She threw her kunai into the sky, she looked like she was going to end it with one last move. She formed some hand seals. Sasuke's eyes widened a little as he noticed those were seals for a fire jutsu.

"Katon, Karyuu Endan! (Fire style, Fire Dragon Flame Blast)" her voice sounded confident and firm but somehow she sounded off as soft spoken. She blew into the hole she made with her fist and a Dragon made out of flames engulfed the man. He cried out in pain. When the flames ended, there was a huge piece of charcoal in the place where the man was supposed to be. But if you look closely, you can make it out as a body.

Naruto gulped nervously. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the girl. Kakashi seemed impressed by the girl's abilities especially when she looked around Sasuke and Naruto's age.

The girl straightened and the kunai came back down to earth, stabbing into the earth. The girl bent down to pick her weapon up, but she paused halfway. Her vision began to blur and her body throbbed; she fell with her hood sliding off her head and revealing her pink hair that was held up by a hair needle with a light pink Sakura flower at the end that slipped off her hair and landed on the floor in the end.

Naruto and Sasuke's eye widened a little at the sight of her. For someone that's dressed like she had been living a cave her whole life, she looked rather pretty. But that was no time to be admiring her. They all leaped out from behind the bushes to help her. Kakashi was checking her wound and her pulse when a voice suddenly shouted.

"This girl! Sh- She's-!" he glanced at his newspaper and then at the girl again the down at the paper then the girl.

"You know her? Old man?" said Naruto.

"She's got the whole Iwagakure riled up, it's all over the news. They seemed desperate to reclaim her, they even offered a reward to anyone who can provide information on her and even more for her return" said Tazuna. "For now, we should probably treat her wound first" said Kakashi, he carried the girl back to their camp.

Naruto followed for a few steps before noticing that Sasuke wasn't in front of him, he looked back and saw Sasuke just standing up. "What's with the slow reaction, Sasuke. It's not like you" Naruto mocked with a grin. "Shut up" Sasuke deadpanned and jumped off before Naruto could.

Kakashi patched her up based on the basics of medical treatment all shinobi were required to know. He disinfected the wound and bandaged it up.

They put her on Kakashi's never-been-used sleeping bag. Since no one had seen that man use it to sleep in and left her kunai next to her. "Right, now that that's taken care off. You guys should go get some rest, we're going reach our goal by afternoon" said Kakashi.

"That's it? We're just going to sleep till daybreak?" Naruto complained rather loudly, till a rock was thrown at his head from some random direction. Naruto cursed and turned to that random direction, Sasuke was acting innocent and faced away from him. It didn't really work, considering the fact that he still hada _rock_ in his hand.

"Teme! I'll show you how to throw a rock at someone!" Naruto looked around to find something big enough to permanently injure Sasuke with. But Sasuke paid no attention to his teammate trying to find the murder weapon to kill him with, instead his attention was on a certain hair accessory that smelt faintly of cherry blossoms and dirt.

Kakashi sighed tiredly, "If you insist on staying up so much, I'll let you take turns in standing guard" he offered. "Alright then, I'll stay up first. Kakashi-sensei and Teme can go sleep your ass off. I'll wake one of you up in an hour, then again..." Naruto trailed off and started fantasizing about beating the crap out of a midnight bandit and having Kakashi and Sasuke at his feet .

After a few hours, he fell asleep….

Sasuke was on a branch, on knee propped up and the other leg dangled from the branch. "What a loser..." Sasuke rolled his eyes, then they landed on the sleeping female. His eyes narrowed suspiciously at her, who was she...? He felt the need to know, badly. But the more he stared the more unaware of his surroundings he got, he snapped out of it when he suddenly felt light. Too late, he felt off the branch he was sitting on with a hard thud and a toneless "Ow"

Sasuke stumbled out of the bushes and began shaking off leaves and twigs stuck on his body. "What' wrong, Sasuke" Kakashi said after placing Naruto in his own sleeping bag. "Falling out of trees when you're not even moving isn't like you" he said in a half mocking tone. Sasuke pulled out a twig from his hair and threw it off behind him. He decided to ignore his sensei's question, and just sit down near the fire.

"You should get some sleep too, Sasuke" Kakashi said, placing a hand on his student's shoulder, Sasuke attempted to glare at his teacher till he understood that he had no intention of sleeping through the night, but Kakashi didn't seem like the type of person to give in no matter how scary the glare was. "Tch" and with that, Uchiha Sasuke's glare failed to convince his teacher and he moved over to one side of the clearing, away from everyone else and laid there for what seemed like hours till he finally fell asleep.

Next morning, Sasuke was woken up by a loud noise, AKA Naruto's morning call.

"AH! Kakashi-sensei didn't keep me awake" said Naruto, jumping on his feet

"Oh, Naruto, you're awake" said Kakashi-sensei, walking out of the trees. "Noisy shit…" muttered Sasuke, sitting up and ruffling his hair that was spikier in the morning.

Naruto pretended he didn't hear that and ran straight to Kakashi-sensei. "You didn't fight anyone when we were asleep right?" his eyes looked up expectantly at Kakashi.

"No, I fell asleep too" said Kakashi, rubbing the back of his head.

Everyone sweatdropped

"What! You do realize that I could've been attack while you... lazy shinobi were dozing off on duty" said Tazuna, everyone looked at him suspiciously. "Why are you so anxious, Tazuna-san? Is there something you've been keeping from us?" Kakashi said as he narrowed his eyes. "I-I have my reasons" Tazuna said rather nervously, quickly turning the other way.

Before Kakashi could push him any further, they heard someone getting up. They looked to where the girl was, she rose to sit up. She rubbed her eyes a little before they opened and blinked a few times, as her eyes adjusted to the view. Her eyes were a beautiful bright shade of green, those eyes scanned the camp and then they showed hints of alarming. She noticed a bunch of people she didn't know. Her eyes completely transformed into an alert and fierce shade of green. She reached for the sides to feel for anything she could use to defend herself, and that's when she was reunited with her kunai. For a brief moment there was a flash of relief and happiness in her eyes before the fierce side took over again.

She was on her feet in a flash, taking on a defensive stance since there were so many opponents. Her eyes widened just a little Kakashi flinched and two clawed shinobi came out of nowhere and rounded him then ripped him to pieces.

His two students were alarmed that their teacher had just been ripped apart in front of their own eyes. Naruto didn't move from his spot, but Sasuke was already in a battle stance.

"Hmm, the jounin is gone, only two more brats to go, I'll handle them, you get the bridge master" commanded the one with the claw. Tazuna stood looking around anxiously, expecting his death very soon. Sasuke was in combat with the clawed one, Naruto didn't turn out to be as useful in combat as he proves to be with his mouth. Sasuke gritted his teeth his frustration as he noticed their client was in trouble and his motor mouth teammate was just standing there wetting himself!

The other assassin was about to wrap Tazuna in his spiked chains and rip him to pieces like what he did with Kakashi, the chains went round and round Tazuna, the assassin pulled the chains and they closed in, but before the chains were able to wrap Tazuna up, a blur of pink and white entered the field and with a clang, she sent the chains flying off course and off Tazuna's body

She then rushed at the man whose chains were already starting to reel in. She was in front of him before he could feel his metal hand reunite with him, she kicked him in the chest, knocking him backwards, Sasuke also did the same with the other guy, they rammed their backs into each other and fell unconscious

The two were shooting scowls at each other, the two worked unconsciously well together but neither trusted the another. He tied them up then turned to Naruto who was still rooted to the ground.

"You're not hurt are you? Scaredy cat" Sasuke mocked

"Sasuke….." said Naruto, clenching his fist and gritting his teeth 'I couldn't do anything...! Why! Naruto you loser!' then he just remembered "Kakashi-sensei's…!" said Naruto.

"What about me, Naruto?" said Kakashi, reading his book on a branch just behind them."Kakashi-sensei! You're alive!" he shouted. "Course I am" Kakashi answered in a flat tone, too engrossed in his book to even look up."H-How'd you" Naruto said looking at the pile of wood pieces that were supposed to be pieces of Kakashi.

"A substitution technique….." said Sasuke.

"If you were there all the time, why didn't you help? I could've died!" yelled Tazuna.

Kakashi closed his book and looked at Tazuna straight in the eye "I wanted to see who were they aiming at, you?" Kakashi looked over at the girl who still looks like she wants to kill them "Or her. But those assassins were clearly aiming for you." Kakashi jumped down from the branch and landed right in front of Tazuna, who began sweating too much for him to blame it on the weather. "But I had to admit, I never expected Naruto would pose as a statue in the middle of a battle after all that talk about being able to fight a man as big as a bear" said Kakashi, looking over his shoulder at Naruto.

Surprisingly Naruto didn't deny it with extreme force like he usually does, instead he just kept silent and dug his nails into his palms. "Be more prepared next time, Naruto" said Kakashi. Sasuke snorted "Or at least try not to wet your pants in the middle of a battle" Sasuke mocked. The normal Naruto returned, more fired up than before "Shut up, Teme! I didn't wet my pants!" Naruto shouted at Sasuke's mocking accusation. "You got beaten, by a girl"

"She beats you too!" Naruto shouted. Kakashi cut in "Speaking about the girl" he looked over at the girl, she narrowed her eyes darkly at him. "Who are you people?" she demanded with a voice that sounded hostile no matter how you take it. Kakashi raised his hands "Let's just talk... shall we" Kakashi said with a smile, though you can't see most of his face, his eye showed everything you needed to know. Or at least what he wanted you to know.

The girl didn't seem convince, and Naruto probably made it worst by-

"Hiya! My name's Uzumaki Naruto!" Naruto said from beside her. "Uwaa!" the girl jumped in shock but that only lasted a second before it all stonified as she held her kunai tighter, she pressed the weapon at Naruto's neck before he even had time to react. She glared at him darkly. "D-Did I do something wrong...?" he asked nervously, looking back and forth from the girl and his sensei.

Sasuke smacked a hand to his forehead at Naruto's ingenious act to make the girl trust them by sneaking up on her. "You people saved me... why" the girl wasn't so hostile anymore, but she was currently holding Naruto hostage to demand useless information out of them.

"Why? Well we couldn't like leave you there, right?" said Naruto, speaking casually even though his life was clearly in her hands. "And what did you plan to do after that" she growled. "Planned?" Kakashi scratched the back of his head. "I was just planning to talk, we'll answer whatever questions you ask. You can let Naruto go, but that's optional, we'll answer either way" said Kakashi. "Hey!" Naruto shouted. The girl reluctantly let go and Naruto quickly took a step away.

The girl clutched her side and fell on one knee, when everyone tried to help she threatened them with a menacing glare which they guess, meant: _Any closer and I'll rip your guts out_. Sasuke started walking towards her, hands in his pocket with a face that didn't seem affected by the silent threat. "S-Sasuke!" Naruto called out to him.

The girl held up her kunai and he knelt down, as if daring her to do it. He ignored her kunai and hostility and took hold of her hand that was clutching the wound, she growled at him and etched away like an injured animal. Sasuke scowled then looked up at her, only to have it back fire him cause one second he was irritated at the stubborn girl, then the next he'd wished he never got angry at her because she looked like an injured prey about to get eaten by the predator, which in this case, was Sasuke. Her eyes starting to water as she looked down at Sasuke's unmoving hand, as if he was going to stab his hand violently into her wound the lick the blood out of his hands like some kind of maniac. Sasuke was staring at her with a faint blush on his cheeks

"Teme's having pervy thoughts!" Naruto shouted, earning him a death glare deluxe that send him quivering behind Kakashi, "I-I'm not scared of y-you!" Naruto lied helplessly. Once Sasuke turned back to try and help the girl again, she was narrowing her eyes at him, no longer showing that weak form from before. _That was fast._

Sasuke decided to shake it from his head, and instead of trying to pluck her fingers open from her clutch, he decided to put his hand on top of hers. "Let me see..." he said softly. The girl looked at him, the look in her eyes starting to soften, and eventually she let go, allowing Sasuke to take a look at the wound from behind the bandages. There was a growing stain of blood coming through. Sasuke started to unwrap the bandages, he could tell the girl was holding back from slicing him up with her kunai as her free hand kept twitching.

After resealing the girl's wound, he wrapped it up with fresh new bandages. "That should fix it" he muttered to no one in particular then standing up. "Th-" he heard someone stuttered and looked down at the girl that was still crouched down. "Thank you" she eventually got it out. Sasuke just jammed his hands in his pockets and turned away without another word.

"Impressive Sasuke, never knew you had it in you" his sensei told him as Sasuke passed his sensei without so much as sparring him a look. The girl stood up "Who are you people" she asked with a softer tone, but not soft enough to let people know she's vulnerable. "Konoha Shinobi! I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I'm going to be hokage someday!" Naruto declared.

"H-Hokage...? One of the world leaders?" the girl said, actually believing him. "He's lying" a voice from behind sound and Naruto started cursing at Sasuke on the tree.

Kakashi walked over to the girl, she didn't consider them a threat anymore. "Don't mind them, they're always like that. I'm their sensei, Hatake Kakashi" Kakashi held out his hand. The girl shook it then she glanced at Sasuke who was sitting on a tree branch, ignoring Naruto's wrath. "Who's that other boy" she asked, looking back at Kakashi.

Kakashi glanced at Sasuke, "Uchiha Sasuke" he answered. The girl glanced over at Tazuna. "I suppose you people are on a mission?" she asked. "Yeah" Kakashi pointed a thumb at Tazuna "He's our current client, that aside. Who are you?" Kakashi asked.

This question cause the boys to shut up, well Naruto's doing most of the shutting up. Sasuke just listened as Naruto moved over to the girl. "Haruno, I-" she paused "I was from Iwagakure" she answered softly. "What's your first name" Naruto asked. The girl stayed silent for a moment "I don't have one"

"How can you _not _have one, everyone has one." Naruto asked, more like demanded. "Sensei just calls me Haruno or "The Monster Tool'" she told him, Naruto now wished he hadn't asked that question. But then an idea hit him. "Then we'll give you a name!"

The girl looked at him "Eh?" Naruto grinned at her. He looked around for a stick then picked it up and knelt down. "Erm... Haruno... how do you write that..?" he asked, scratching his head. The girl took the stick from him and wrote down her name in kanji on the ground. "Right! Let's see, what would make a good name for you..." Naruto glanced over at the girl. She was a pretty girl with pink hair that reached down to her hip, though it looked like it has never been combed properly. She had refreshing bright green eyes and a child like face, with a few bruises here and there. Naruto started scribbling down names that he thought would make the girl next to him.

Soon, Kakashi joined in and started suggesting names too. "No no, Keiko doesn't really suit her" he reached out to cross the name

"What about ramen!"

Kakashi conked him on the head.

Sasuke snapped a stick in half and jumped off the branch then started walking towards the ground crouching around a bunch of scribbles. He knelt down and everyone looked at him as he wrote the words in katakana 'Sa-ku-ra'

Naruto tilted his head as he read "Haruno... Saku-ra." Kakashi nodded in satisfaction. "Sakura, that's a suitable name"

Everyone looked at the girl. She was smiling "Sakura... I love it" The guys seemed relieved. Naruto stood up "Alright! From today onwards, you'll be known as Haruno Sakura-chan" he announced. Sasuke smirked and Kakashi smiled, invisibly.

Sakura nodded firmly. "Now that we know who you are, back to the previous subject" Kakashi said, glancing over at Tazuna, who looked rather nervous. "If I remembered correctly, this is a C-ranked mission. We are only supposed to protect you from bandits and robbers. If you included shinobi assassins" Kakashi glanced over at the tied up two that's trying to escape. "It would've been ranked as a B-ranked mission, which clearly. Naruto isn't ready for" said Kakashi.

There was a loud "HEY!" and then a snicker from Sasuke. Tazuna looked reluctant for a moment then sighed and decided to split "Alright I'll tell you" **(I assume you all know the reason)**

...

"We're people from a poor town, how can we afford a B-ranking mission..." Tazuna finished off. "I see... well, now that we know. Naruto, Sasuke." He called out to his students, earning their attention. "I'll give you two choices... one" he held up a finger "We turn back to the village and report to the Hokage" Naruto opened his mouth to protest "Or" Kakashi cut him off "We see this mission to the end, but it's going to be risky" he said.

Naruto exploded "Of course we'll help this old man! A good shinobi don't turn their heads away from danger" Naruto turned to Sasuke "Right? Sasuke" Sasuke snorted "Says the guy who stood still during an attack" he mocked. "That was a long time ago!" Naruto shouted. "Yeah sure, 30 minutes is a long time" Sasuke's voice laced with sarcasm.

"He's right, Naruto. We might not be so lucky during the next attack" said Kakashi. Naruto's dug his nails into his palms. "I won't freeze like that again! I swear on my shinobi pride!" Naruto declared rather confidently. Sasuke raised his eyebrows "I'll hold that against you" he said. Naruto turned to him "Bring it on!"

"So we all agree?" said Kakashi. "Whatever" "Yeah!"

Kakashi turned over to the girl, running her chakra through her kunai to sharpen it. "What are you going to do" he asked. Sakura looked down "W-Well, I don't really have anywhere to go. So I was wondering if I-I could tag along. That is, i-if you don't mind" she said, nervously looking on the floor. A hand reached out before. "Let's go" Sakura lifted her head and her green eyes met Sasuke's black ones.

She took his hand with a smile. Sasuke tried to hide his blush by scowling at the ground with full force. It wasn't long before they reached the harbor, it was misty and dark and no one was there. "_This_ is the harbor to the land of waves...?" said Naruto. "This is the only way to get to the island, though, no one really wants to go there, not when Gatou reigns" said Tazuna.

They looked around for a boat but no one appeared to be there, Kakashi looked over at Tazuna "You said there was a guide here to bring us to the island" said Kakashi "He should be here soon"

He walked to the group of people sitting down on the bench "Alright then, you guys can go scout around" said Kakashi-sensei but the boys were already running in different directions.

"Ok then…. I'll just stay here" said Kakashi then he noticed that Sakura was staying put, he smiled at her "Why don't you go for a little walk, I'll stay here" said Kakashi. "A-Alright"

The harbor wasn't far from the forest, since there wasn't any other route, Sakura stepped into the forest and entered a clearing, it was an extraordinary sight, the leaves were shining from the sunlight, in the middle, there weren't any trees covering the sunlight from entering, which made the sunlight enter the clearing, it was a beautiful sight and there was no mist.

Sakura looked around excitedly.

"What a beautiful place, ne, Sasuke-kun" she said while turning to an apple tree beside her.

"Hn, is there a time where you are not on your guard?" said Sasuke, standing on a branch with a kunai in his hand, probably planning to throw that to test Sakura, he put it back and leaned against the tree.

"I have my weaknesses" said Sakura, smiling

"Sure you do" said Sasuke, sarcastically, then he noticed that the kunoichi's attention wasn't focused on him, it was focused on the fruit above him. He picked it and jumped down, landing swiftly on his feet "Here" he said, tossing her the apple with one hand in his pocket.

She caught it hesitantly.

"You're suppose to bite it" he said, slipping his other hand in his pocket and staring at her with a bored expression. Sakura stared at him with a suspicious look, he rolled his eyes "It's not poison" Sakura frowned then stared down at the fruit, then lifted it to her mouth.

She bit down, but she didn't severe a piece, she paused then put a little more force down

_-Shhaackk-_

"It's good…" she said, smiling.

"Hn" exclaimed Sasuke as walks to the apple tree and threw a kunai to cut an apple down.

But instead of falling on his hand, it fell on it head, he gave a silent "Ite" when it hit him. Sakura started laughing lighting. Sasuke scowled at her then shoved his hands in his pockets "We should go back" He said, turning and walking out of the clearing.

When they reached the docks, they saw Kakashi pulling out thistles from Naruto's outfit. "What happened to the dork" said Sasuke, tonelessly.

"I'm not a dork!"

"I bet you slipped off a tree and fell into a thistle bush or something" said Sasuke.

"You were spying on me?" Naruto demanded in shock.

"Anyone could've figured that out just by looking at you" said Sasuke.

Naruto turned to look at Sakura as if asking if she agreed with Sasuke, but she was still eating the apple Sasuke introduced her to, she looked up from the apple and gave a smile while chewing. Naruto blushed and looked away.

After a while of waiting and pulling thistles, much to Naruto's dismay. The boat finally arrived, it was a man paddled boat and the paddler was one of Tazuna's workers.

When they reached the village, they silently got off cause if one of Gatou's men caught them using water transport, they would be executed. Just as everyone got out of the boat, Kakashi shouted "Everyone get down!"

A spinning blade came flying towards them, everyone got on the floor except for the paddler, he was terrorized with fear that he couldn't even move. Sakura got up and jumped in front of the paddler, and blocked the sword with her kunai, even after it was stopped the blade kept on spinning in high speed.

Sakura clenched her teeth then turned around and knocked the paddler off his feet, they escaped death but the sword grazed Sakura's shoulder.

She sat up and turned around to see the sword stuck on the tree and let out a breath "Ite" she exclaimed and held her shoulder.

The two boys landed next to the wounded kunoichi as Kakashi remained next to Tazuna with a kunai in hand.

"You alright?" asked Sasuke.

"I'm fine" said Sakura, wincing a little.

Next Chapter

"Shit, he caught me"

"You brats don't stand a chance against me without the copy ninja"

"Suiton, Daibafuku no Jutsu!"

"There's no such thing as a real hero!"

"He's alive"

* * *

**So how was the alteration :D I'm sorry I couldn't shorten it much though. For the new readers! What did you think? Do you hate it? I know Sakura is a little Mary-sue-ish haha! XD Reviews are much appreciated and will be treasured by the author. If you don't feel like reviewing it's okay! I'm still happy that you clicked this amateur writer's story :3 **

**Before you go! I have a question **

**Naruto or Sasuke?**


	2. In the Mist

**Hi guys! Back with a new chapter! Hope there aren't many mistakes :3 Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer : Credits goes to the brilliant Masashi Kishimoto~**

* * *

**In the Mist**

A man with a face that's wrapped up in bandages jumped onto the sword that's stuck sideways on the tree.

"Bastard! You're going to pay for that!" snarled Naruto. Sasuke pulled out a kunai and took his stance, glaring at the masked swordsman. "Momochi... Zabuza" said Kakashi, narrowing his eye at Zabuza. "The copy ninja, Hatake Kakashi. It's been awhile" said Zabuza, his eyes holding a sadistic look.

Zabuza smirked and jumped off his sword and pulled it out from the tree "Hou… What do we have here, a bunch of new graduate brats I see" he mocked. "I'll show you who's a brat" snapped Naruto "Naruto, don't!-" Kakashi yelled at him from Tazuna's side.

Naruto didn't stop, he felt a hand on his head, it pushed down on his head and sending him kneeling down on the ground with the sword just barely missing his spiky hair. Sakura, now upside down grabbed hold of Zabuza's sword and placed herself on top. Zabuza's eyes widened as Sakura lunged at him from his own sword, her kick missing his head as he tilted it to the side. He pulled his sword up high and turned to where Sakura had just landed. She gasped as she spun around, expecting to feel the large blade in her body but all she saw a was a head of black locks.

Sasuke's kunai was holding against Zabuza's blade, trembling at the tremendous pressure that was put on him. "To be able to hold his own against me, you're pretty praiseworthy. Kid" said Zabuza, amused. Sasuke gritted his teeth, he was mocking him. He wasn't even trying and he was struggling here like this. "He gave the blade one strong push that sent it back to Zabuza before jumping off with Sakura to meet up with Naruto, who has just got up. "AH! You guys stole all the action, again!" Naruto whined.

"Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura! Protect Tazuna-san" shouted Kakashi.

They retreated to Kakashi "Kakashi-sensei you know that guy?" said Naruto. "A long time ago, I fought him during a mission" said Kakashi."I didn't expect to see you here, Kakashi" said Zabuza, walking toward them with his blade resting on his shoulder. Kakashi lifted the forehead protector that blocked his left eye revealing his sharingan.

"Ohh…. I like that look in your sharingan" said Zabuza in a sadistic chuckle. 'Sharingan….?' Thought Sasuke, looking at Kakashi and noticing that his left eye was indeed a sharingan 'Is he….?'

Kakashi charged at Zabuza with lightning speed, the three ninjas heard metal clashing so fast, they could barely keep up, and they were just listening.

A shadow closed in on the tree and was about to slash Tazuna when Sakura block the sword with her kunai. Sasuke's body immediately reacted to the sound of metal with Naruto less than a second behind, they turned and looked toward Sakura.

"Hou….. now where have I seen that face before" said Zabuza's water clone. Naruto and Sasuke ran to help the kunoichi "No! That's what he wants, stay by Tazuna-san" commanded Sakura. "But-" said Naruto.

"She's right, Naruto. Look." said Sasuke, holding his kunai and stepping ahead of Tazuna and facing the incoming clones.

"Kh…."

Sakura clenched her teeth then she smiled, Zabuza looked confused. Then the next thing the clone knew, Sakura was behind him, she swung her kunai and slashed him into water. Naruto was fighting Zabuza with his shadow clones, Sasuke was fighting with only taijutsu and a kunai.

More clones showed up, Sasuke and Naruto were having a hard time just to kill one clone.

The three were cornered around Tazuna.

"Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, lend me your ears" said Sakura. The boys nodded as she whispered loud enough for only them to heard.

"That's a brilliant idea, Sakura-chan!" said Naruto. "It might just work" said Sasuke, smirking. Sakura nodded silently with a firm expression. "Ready?" said Sasuke.

Sakura and Naruto nodded then the blonde made five clones who picked Tazuna up and fled. "Not so fast" said one of the clones, about to stop them but they were stopped when they heard voices.

"Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" said Sakura and Sasuke in unison, they blew into the holes in their fist and a huge fireball shot out. They circled the area and making sure none of the clones dodged, they stopped.

"It worked!" said Sakura happily. "Yeah... where's the dork" said Sasuke looking around. "Who're you calling dork!" said Naruto, setting Tazuna down with the rest of his clones. "Now's not the time to argue, Kakashi-san's having a hard time, his chakra is very unstable" said Sakura. "Wait, how do you know that" said Sasuke, his brows slightly furrowed

"You mean you can't feel it?" said Sakura, confused. Naruto and Sasuke gave her odd looks but she just shook her head. "There's no time, this mist is trapping us from our real surroundings….." said Sakura, forming the ox seal. "Kaze Chakra,". There was an outburst of chakra, it dispelled the surrounding jutsu away, the mist was cleared and they could see Zabuza standing on water and looking around.

"Whoa, Sakura-chan, how'd you do that" said Naruto, looking around like an idiot. "It just something I made up to blow away any attacks that use up chakra, though there is a limit to what I can blow away" breathed Sakura

"Where's Kakashi-sensei" said Naruto.

Suddenly the water shot up from below Zabuza but then, the enemy just smirked he formed some hand seals and said "Suiton, Suirou no Jutsu!" he pointed his hand towards his bottom right with his right hand then Kakashi was revealed to be trapped inside.

"Shit, he caught me" said Kakashi.

Zabuza chuckled darkly "You're so pathetic, did you really think I would fall for that?" said Zabuza.

"Kakashi-sensei!" "Kh…"

"You brats don't stand a chance without the copy ninja" said Zabuza as he let out a laugh.

"Take Tazuna-san and get out of here!" Kakashi called out to his students and Sakura, before quickly covered his mouth to prevent him from losing any more oxygen.

The three stood their ground, refusing to listen to the jounin. "We have to get Kakashi-san out of there, even if we run now he'll just catch us in no time" said Sakura. "I hate to admit it but it's true" said Sasuke. "But how are we going to get him out of there?" said Naruto.

"Listen" said Sakura as the two boys leaned in to listen.

After she finished explaining the two nodded and got into position but they made sure Tazuna was safe by making Naruto create shadow clones as stand in guards.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu" said Naruto and soon a whole army of Naruto was standing near the river. "Hou….. that brat can actually make that many" said Zabuza, he lifted his sword with one hand while the other was place on the water prison, trapping Kakashi.

All the Narutos charged at Zabuza he kicked and sliced everyone of them but none of them were real. Soon the missing nin noticed something was up 'Where's that raven haired kid…..' thought Zabuza as his eyes scanned the area. He felt something tighten around his arm "Katon, Ryuuka no Jutsu" His eyes widened at the voice and he looked down at his arm

Flames were coming from the trees at rapid speed, Zabuza had to let go and slice the wire of before it burned him.

"That was close, shit, Kakashi got away" said Zabuza then he turned to Tazuna who was only surrounded by three Narutos, he charged towards them with his sword.

Naruto's clones got ready for battle. The real Naruto lifted his head from the water "Sakura-chan!"

While Zabuza was charging, Sakura stepped in front and form some hand seals. "Suiton, Daibafuku no Jutsu!" said yelled then the water from the river rose and Zabuza turned around and saw a humongous wave washing towards him.

The Naruto clones poofed off and Kakashi brought Tazuna away from the waves while Sasuke carried the exhausted Sakura away.

Naruto was stepping out of the water, soaked from head to toe.

Sakura was panting heavily. "You alright?" asked Sasuke, his arm still around her waist. "Yeah I'm fine" she managed to get out. "Where's Naruto-kun". In came the voice from the blonde "Here" he said, tilting his head and whacking it to make the water clogged up in his ear come out.

"Fuuton, Suiton, Katon. Sakura, there are jounin that aren't capable of using that many elements." said Kakashi, his eye narrowed "Who are you?"

Sakura looked reluctant to talk, she looked down as if she was being scolded by her teacher, "I-I'm afraid I can't say anything at the moment" she mumbled.

"More importantly, did we get him?" said Naruto. "I'll go check" said Kakashi, jumping off. After awhile they realized that it wasn't supposed to take this long just to check on a dead person.

"Isn't it taking him a bit too long just to check on a dead guy?" said Naruto, looking around at his resting teammates. Sasuke and Sakura exchanged look "We should go see what's going on"

They made their way to the place where the fight took place and saw an unconscious Kakashi lying on a moist ground, not so much as twitching a muscle.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto called out to him as he ran to the jounin's side.

Sakura had her arm over Sasuke's shoulder and he held her up as they made their way slowly to Kakashi and Naruto. Tazuna bent over to check on Kakashi's pulse "He's fine but we've gonna get him some first aid, his slash wound looks serious" the old man said as he gestured to the slash across his stomach.

"What happened to that Zabuza guy" said Naruto.

"Beats me" shrugged Sasuke.

Naruto contributed most with carrying Kakashi back to the Tazuna's house with his ability to multiply.

"We're almost there" said Tazuna.

When the team went closer, they saw a little house by the sea, Tazuna opened the door and let them in, he showed them to an empty room and Naruto laid the soaked Kakashi down on the bed. Sakura and Sasuke fell on their backs and started panting, Naruto lean down on them.

"What's wrong with you two" he said.

"Aren't you tired, Naruto-kun?" asked Sakura, impressed that he actually had the energy to still move around considering how many clones he had made in one day. "Not really" Naruto moved his limbs to check "And you don't need to add the honorific, Sakura-chan, it feels weird"

"Ah….Naruto then" said Sakura.

Naruto just gave her a wide grin."So now what are we gonna do" he said, mostly looking to Sasuke as if expecting him to say something. "We wait till Kakashi wakes up then ask him" said Sasuke, closing his eyes. There was a knock on the door and in came a woman who looked to be in her late twenties "I've got some towels" she said

"Thanks, oba-san" said Naruto helping himself to one and throwing it over his wet hair.

Tazuna came in after the woman with a first aid kit in one hand to help clean and bandage Kakashi's wounds. As he worked on the jounin, he looked rather depressed "What am I going to do, that guy could still be out there" he mumbled. Sakura smiled "For now please stay do not leave this house, until Kakashi-san wakes up and tells us what to do, we'll keep you safe" she reassured him.

"Another hero who talks big huh. What a rip off" a voice cut into the conversation with a huff.

The three young shinobi looked over at the small kid standing at the door, he looked no older than 8 years, he had a rather angry look on his face and he wore his hat low. But Sakura saw something flash in his eyes, _hurt_.

"Inari!" the woman, Tsunami shouted before the boy ran upstairs. "I'm sorry, that's my grandson, his father was killed trying to save the village." Said Tazuna, looking down. "I'm sorry for your loss" muttered Sakura.

"He died an honorable way, but Inari was devastated over his death and felt betrayed, he was his hero. That boy was never the same" said The woman.

"I'm gonna go talk to him" said Sakura getting up.

"I'll come" said Naruto and Sasuke in unison, the two of them looked at each other then scowled. "Why do you want to come?" said Naruto. "None of your business, dope" argued Sasuke.

Naruto swallowed his anger and just stood up, allowing this time to slip as they trailed after Sakura with his raven haired teammate. The two boys watched the little figure walk up the stairs. They closed in on the room, Sakura stopped "What is it?" asked Sasuke.

"Shh, listen" said Sakura, placing a finger on her lips.

The three listened closely outside the door that wasn't closed properly and they could hear someone sobbing. Sakura slowly opened the door, the boy jumped and growled "Don't come in!" and Sakura immediately stopped in her tracks "Inari-kun, right" she said through the slightly opened door.

"What do you want" said Inari in a rather rude tone. "Can we talk?" Sakura asked him rather timidly.

Inari, softening up a little bit after hearing it was Sakura "I don't want to talk to a fake hag hero that talks big." Said Inari. Naruto rushed past Sakura and pushed the door open.

"Naruto!" said Sakura.

Naruto was holding Inari by the collar and lifting him off the ground "Look you brat! She's just trying to help! If you don't wanna talk then you can ask her to go away nicely!" said the enraged Naruto.

"What's the point!" said Inari, teary eyed. "Huh?" Naruto looked at him, confused.

"Everyone just gonna end up like my dad, they said they are gonna be alright but they end up dying, he was my hero… but he died, there are no such thing as a real hero" said Inari, letting the tears roll down his cheek even though he looked like he was trying really hard not to cry.

Naruto felt someone grab one of his hands that were holding Inari up the turned to look at the pink-hair girl, with eyes pleading him to let go. He calmed down and let him down and Inari starting covering his face and crying louder.

Sakura stroked his back. "Inari-kun's father was a great man that defended this village till the end, but you know... just because he died defending what he loved till the end doesn't make him a fake hero either, I'm sure he doesn't regret what he had done," said Sakura.

Inari slapped her hand away and his head shot up "What do you know! You…..Hag?" said Inari he finally had a clear view of her face.

She was a lot more beautiful from up close, in fact she wasn't ugly at all. Her soft looking hip length hair was pinned up by her hair needle, the hair that framed her face rolled down her shoulders and sat on her chest.

Inari looked at her with widened eyes he began to regret calling her all those names. He blushed when he realized how close she was to him. Then there was a loud thumping of footsteps and Inari was suddenly sent flying back with a punch to the face.

"I don't know much, but I'm sure that what your father did was not a loss. We'll make sure of it"

"Why" said Inari. Sakura gave him a questioned look.

"Aren't you angry at me? After I said all those horrible things to you" he nearly shouted, his voice breaking as he began crying again. Sakura's eyes softened "It's fine…." said Sakura, her eyes glimmering as she smiled at him. "I don't mind" she offered softly.

Inari looked up at Sakura with his watery eyes, and for the first time in a long time. He allowed himself to be embraced by a woman. "It's alright to cry, I won't look" Sakura said softly. Inari didn't hold back, he sobbed on her chest (Not her breasts, your pervs) The two boys eyed the little man with jealousy, even Sasuke. Though he'd rather die than admit it 'Brat….' They thought

After awhile of crying out, Inari felt better and they went downstairs with Sakura.

"Inari! Did you say something bad to the guest again" scolded his mother. Inari stayed quiet, it was true. He did say some awful things to Sakura. "He just needed a little crying that's all" said Sakura, she rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "Hmph" she could hear Sasuke exclaim from behind her.

His mother's eyes softened up as she understood what Sakura did, she gave the kunoichi a grateful look and she returned it with a nod. The three made their way to where Kakashi was resting to check if the jounin was doing okay.

"Looks like we'll be here for awhile" said Sasuke. Then Sakura went to a corner of the room "Yeah, you're right so we might as get some rest till Kakashi-san wakes up"

"But I don't wanna re-" said Naruto but he was cut off when Sasuke shushed him.

"What's your prob-" Naruto cut himself short when he noticed Sasuke pulling out a blanket from the pile and walking over to Sakura who was already curled up in a corner, head leaning on the wall, fast asleep. He pulled the blanket over her gently and just left it as it is, afraid to actually make contact with her.

'Huh, I guess the teme has a heart afterall'

Next morning…

Sakura groaned sleepily then she looked to her left, there was a blonde ninja boy sleeping against the wall then when she turned to her right, there was a raven head doing the same with one of his leg bending up.

Then she went back to sleep but her eyes shot back open, and she jumped up and stepped back, they were too close! Besides, she specifically remembered she went to sleep in the corner. How'd she end up between these two?

She smiled then looked at the unoccupied bed where Kakashi used to be lying in, she moved Sasuke to the bed, then placed Naruto next to him. She then proceeded to walk downstairs and saw Kakashi standing outside and looking at the sea, she walked to stand next to him "How're your wounds, Kakashi-san" said Sakura.

"I should be fine but I'll need some time to recover" said Kakashi. "What happened to Zabuza" said Sakura, her voice suddenly becoming serious. Kakashi's unhidden eye fell serious as well "He's alive, but he'll need time to recuperate and I can't do anything in this state so during that time, I'll train those two boys" said Kakashi.

"On what?" asked Sakura.

"Climbing trees with Chakra" said Kakashi, he paused then looked at the kunoichi "which reminds me, Sakura. Have you been trained on that?"

"No, I haven't" said Sakura. "Then you may join the boys" said Kakashi. Her eyes lit up in excitement as she nodded fiercely, just then a scream made Kakashi and Sakura turn their heads to the stairs.

They ran upstairs and threw the door that Naruto and Sasuke was sleeping in open.

They saw Sasuke wincing one eye, on the floor with one hand support him up and the other on the back of his head while Naruto had his ass in the air and his face on the floor while his body leans on the bed.

"What happened?" said Kakashi.

"I woke up and saw a dork in bed with me" "I woke up in bed and saw a bastard next to me" they said in unison.

Sakura swallowed "I-I'm sorry, I wanted to thank you for accompanying me on the floor last night so I placed you both on the bed but there was only one" said Sakura, giving them an apologetic look.

Naruto blushed and Sasuke merely brushed it off "It's fine" they said in unison as they got up from the floor. Kakashi smirked under his mask and turned to walk out but before that he said "Come on, we're going training after breakfast"

The word 'training' excited them and both more than anyone could imagine. They finished their breakfast in the fastest time yet as Sakura was only halfway through hers and they're already asking for seconds.

Kakashi let them to a clearing surrounded by trees, "I want you to climb these tree" said Kakashi. "What kinda training is this?" protested Naruto. "You have to climb the trees, without using your hands" said Kakashi. The three stayed silent and allowed the jounin to demonstrate

Kakashi began walking towards the tree with his crutches and when he reached the root of the tree, he continued walking up vertically upwards.

"Whoa!" said Naruto

"Store Chakra under your feet and keep it balance, a little more and you'll get repelled. You might wanna start off with a running start" said Kakashi, landing on his feet.

The three nodded and ran off to different trees, Naruto fell on his bottom after 3 feet while Sasuke made 10 feet before he was repelled, he landed swiftly on his feet.

Sakura stared at the tree when she reached it and took a step up and another, she was standing vertically straight on the tree "This isn't so hard" she called out to Kakashi when she was halfway up the tree.

"Whoa good going, Sakura-chan!" called Naruto called and giving her a thumbs up. Sasuke, not liking the fact he was losing to a girl, turned away with a huff and refused to acknowledge her.

She smiled and jumped off with perfectly light landing. "Okay, since Sakura has no problem with this, she can move on to water walking, and you boys can continue, remember to mark each spot you reach on the tree with a kunai" said Kakashi turned away and waved dismissively at them.

The boys nodded and Sakura followed Kakashi to the river nearby.

Kakashi told her that walking on water is slightly more difficult, the tree is a solid but the water is a liquid, you can't hold it in your hands so by using chakra, they can repel through the surface of water and create a hold on it and make it possible to stand on it.

Sakura gulped at the river rushing by but breath out and concentrated her chakra, she sank in but not completely, the water reached her knees before she stood still.

She walked out and tried again, after a few tries she managed to get it, Kakashi nodded, impressed. "As expected from Sakura"

Sakura smiled and jumped around on the water "Okay then, here's a new challenge, Kuchiyose no jutsu (Summoning technique)" he said as he bit his thumb and formed hand seals before placing them on the ground.

A bunch of weights appeared, properly lined up.

"I want you to where these weight and walk up the tree first then walk on the water and wear them according to order" said Kakashi he point to the left side of the lined up weights "That's the lightest and the other end is the heaviest you don't have to put them all on till the end, just your best"

Sakura nodded and put them on, Kakashi decided to go back to the house in case Zabuza tried to attack again.

Sakura wore the 15 kg one around her shin, she tied it on firmly and not was the arms she put them on and stood up like she was not an extra 60 kg heavier.

She jumped around, "This isn't so bad" she walked to the trees and started to walk up, halfway up Sasuke asked "Sakura, what's that you're wearing" he was standing perfectly straight and facing her.

"Oh this?" Sakura lifted her hand "Kakashi-san asked me to train with these weights on"

Sasuke got repelled off and he landed on his feet below.

Sakura jumped off and made a crater when she landed.

"Just how heavy are those weights?" asked Sasuke, eying them.

"About 25 kg each" replied Sakura, lifting them around to see if there was a tag that could give a more accurate answer but when she found none she just shrugged it off.

'What kind of a girl can walk upwards with 60 kg extra on her body….' He thought then he shook his head and continued training. After a few hours of training, Sakura was already exhausted after reaching 50 kg per limb, making her carry 200 kilograms of extra weight on her. The boys were still going at it in full power. She wondered where do they get so much energy, but after seeing the boys so determined, she decided to push herself even further. she had a shot at the 60 kg strap, a total of 240 kg.

Sakura struggled to stand, when she was finally up, she walked towards the tree trying her best not to drag her feet and began to climb the tree in after she made it to the top, then she jumped down, she was experienced in handling weights now, she repelled the floor with her chakra, which prevented the weight from create craters out of impact.

She was panting heavily but she still walked towards the water. She managed to stand though she struggled a bit with the amount of chakra she had to release, she smiled at her improvement then all of the sudden, her chakra cuts off and she sank.

For the 50th time, Naruto was repelled by his own chakra and fell back down to the ground, landing carelessly on his feet. Sasuke too was repelled however he managed to do a perfect back flip before landing silently on his feet. Both boys heard bubbling sounds and realized something was wrong, they looked to the river only to find that Sakura was nowhere to be seen.

"Sakura-chan" "Sakura...!"

Sakura was at the bottom of the river, frantically trying to unbuckle the weights, she was exhausted and she wasn't able to pull them off. Her lungs were failing and air bubbles escaped her mouth. Her head felt light and her eyes drifted close. 'Sasuke-kun... Naruto...?'

Sasuke and Naruto wasted no time in freeing Sakura from the weights, after she was free, Sasuke wrapped an arm around her waist and swam up, Naruto looked around for something, Sakura's hair needle, he lunged at it once he spotted it. The blonde quickly resurfaced, gasping for air. His headband slump down to cover his eyes he shook his head and readjusted his headband. He should've just left it as it was. Because what he saw turned him redder than he had ever been.

Sasuke's lips were placed on top of Sakura's. To Naruto this would look just like Sasuke taking advantage of the unconscious Sakura.

"Oi, you perverted bastard! What are you trying to do" he yelled at his teammate.

Sasuke didn't bother to turn and look at him and just answered before the blonde starts bothering him "Artificial Respiration" he said after he left Sakura's lips then began to press down on her chest in brief stops. "Oh…" said Naruto, even though he wasn't sure what that means but he was sure it wasn't something perverted, judging but the tone of his voice.

Sasuke pressed his lips back down on the kunoichi's and Naruto blushed before turning away, feeling very uncomfortable. Sakura's eyes shot open and Sasuke immediately straightened. Sakura entered a coughing fit and Sasuke helped her sit, patting her back softly. Sakura's breathing slowed down and she turned to look at Sasuke "Thank you..." she breathed. They paused in that moment till Sakura's hand reached to touch her lip with the feeling of Sasuke's still lingering.

Before Sakura could say anything, Sasuke cut in "Don't misunderstand, t-that wasn't a kiss!" he snapped, covered the lower part of his mouth. Sakura couldn't help but smile "Okay..."

With that Sasuke collapsed next to Sakura, panting as well. Sakura laid down next to him, she heard Naruto's footsteps approaching then a shuffling of grass and Sakura turned to her side and saw Naruto settling next to her. For the first time in her life she felt safe and feel of worries.

"I'm sorry... I should've known my limits" she breathed. "It's cool... as long as you're alright" said Naruto. "Are everyone in Konoha like you two?" she asked them out of curiosity. "What do you mean like us?" said Naruto. "So warm... and welcoming" she trailed off. "Want to come live in Konoha?" Naruto turned to her, with a wide grin. Sakura looked at him "E-Eh?"

"You can become a konoha shinobi as well. I'm sure you'll ace the exams without a problem" said Naruto. Sakura turned from him and looked up "I-I can't..." she muttered. "Why not? I think it's a great idea! Right? Teme" said Naruto, propping himself up with his arm and looking over at Sasuke, hoping the Uchiha would back him up.

"Beats me" that was all he said, he had his back turned to them as he laid on his side. Sakura smiled 'Thank you for offering, but I don't deserve a place like Konoha' she thought silently. Naruto laid back down in a huff, his fatigue chasing after him as his eyelids began to feel heavy just like that the three of them drifted asleep

In the shadows, Kakashi heard every word and he has plan cooking up.

Next Chapter

"Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, get ready"

"Not so fast"

"We're trapped in this dome"

"Sasuke!"

"I'll kill you….."

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**So how was it? Did it improve? I hope it did XD Reviews will be much apprieciated, if you don't review that's fine too! **

**Question: **

**Who do you think is the best looking guy in the series? **

**Leave your answer in your review or you could PM me to let me know, whichever way works! :D**


	3. From Mist to Konoha

**Hello guys, has it been long? I just finished rewriting this chapter so forgive me if there are any mistakes. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto.**

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**From Mist to Konoha**

Naruto groaned, feeling his bones cracking as he sat up. His muscles were all cramped up as he turned mechanically to look over at his other teammates. Sasuke was facing away from him with Sakura next to him. Naruto's eyes lingered on Sakura, for some reasons he found her sleeping form rather intriguing and his eyes refused to move.

Soon, Sasuke slowly awoke. His eyes opened groggily as he sat up and ran a hand through his hair only to catch Naruto staring at something so interesting he didn't even notice Sasuke waking up. The raven head traced Naruto's eyes to find that they landed on the sleeping Sakura, he looked at her. She looked so different in her sleep, so much more at peace and then he realized that he was doing the exact same thing his blond teammate was doing.

The door swung open and their sensei walked in, crutch free. "I see you have finally regained consciousness. That's enough slacking, Sasuke. Wake Sakura, we're leaving for the bridge soon" said Kakashi.

Just when Naruto was about to wake her up, Kakashi stopped him "Naruto, I think you should stand back and let Sasuke do it." he added. Naruto and Sasuke gave him a questioning look. "Just do it" their teacher persisted. Sasuke clicked his tongue in annoyance and did as he was told. Turning his attention back to her as he reached out.

He lightly tapped her then her eyes shot open and her hand shot out and swung a punch on Sasuke's face, thankfully he was fast enough to respond by tilting his head away from the punch and grabbing her wrist. Immediately on guard now and expecting her to strike again. He softened his grip on her arm when her eyes fluttered opened.

Sakura's blurring vision slowly formed and she could make out who it was, she sat back with one hand supported her while she rubs her eye like a sleepy child, Sasuke sighed, looking rather irritated.

"Ah, I'm sorry. It's a habit " said Sakura, apologetically as she withdrew her hand.

"So that's why you wanted Sasuke to do it…" said Naruto but he slowly realizes something "Hey doesn't that mean you don't believe that I can do that too?" said Naruto angrily.

"Well, er, I" said Kakashi but he cut himself off as he turned sharply on his heels and told them to "Get downstairs for breakfast. we leave in half an hour" before he left them.

"Okay!"

...

They finished breakfast and left the house, they said their thanks and left. "That was by far, the most I have ever eaten" said Sakura, shoving the hair needle through her hair. "You haven't eaten a lot of meals, Have you Sakura-chan" said Naruto.

"Food like that wasn't really necessary when you live in a cave" joked Sakura.

Naruto laughed and began to make jokes as they traveled down the road. As the ninjas left the house, shadows moved in, eyes were everywhere in the forest, all had the same target, to get the people living there. Inari was helping his mother with the dishes, he held a big stack of them in his hands and was about to pass them to his mother when the door flung open, revealing three big tough looking men.

"Wh-Who are you people" said Tsunami, hiding her son behind her.

"We are gonna need a hostage, just pick one the kid or the lady" said a bulky bald man.

"I'll go for the lady, get rid of the kid" said a skinny creepy guy.

"No wai-" but before Inari's mother could finish, one of the guys knocked her out.

Leaving Inari to fend for himself, the terrified boy dropped the plate, shattering them loudly, he took one step back but there was already a man standing there waiting for him with a knife, he turned around and realized, he was surrounded.

"Hey, why don't we have a little fun with him- we'll all swing our weapon together and see which one he manages to dodge" said the creepy guy.

They laughed then nodded they raised their sharp weapons to get ready.

'I'm gonna die…I'm gonna die' Inari chanted in his head and suddenly a image of Sakura smiling at him appeared in his mind. The men slashed down "Help me... Onee-chan.." he sobbed and held his head, the sound of metal clashing rang in his ears.

He looked up to see the pink headed kunoichi was standing before him, blocking off the axe that was suppose to land on his head, "You called?" she said with a smile.

He turned to see Naruto and Sasuke blocking off the others, Naruto grinned cheekily "Someone ordered a team of super heroes?" he joked and let out a laughed. Sasuke smirked "Idiot"

"Who are these brats"

"Heroes of justice" declared Inari, proudly.

"You got that right!" grinned Naruto. All at once the three of them pulled back on the enemy, making them stumble forward before proceeding to beat the hell out of them then tied them to a tree outside the house.

"We'd better get back to Kakashi-san, Gatou had already started to attack, no doubt he'd attack at the bridge too" said Sakura, as the boys nodded. Before they left, Sakura knelt down to Inari's level "Your mother is going to be fine, she'll wake up in a bit. For now, stay in the house and lock all the doors, okay?" said Sakura. Inari was still scared but he knew they had to go "Okay" he muttered. Sakura nodded and stood before running off with Sasuke and Naruto.

The three reached the bridge after a few minutes only to find that the workers were leaving, they didn't waste time to ask about it "Kakashi-sensei! Gatou's men are on the move!" Naruto called out to his silvered haired teacher. The mist thickened and sounds of men being knocked out filled the air "What's going on?" shouted Tazuna.

"Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, Get ready" said Kakashi, arming himself with a kunai.

The three didn't need to be told twice and surrounded Tazuna with their backs facing him.

Sasuke was the first to get attacked, needles flew his way but he blocked them off with his kunai, Sakura noticed that they couldn't see and formed the ox hand seal "Fuuton, Kaze Chakra!" she said as an outburst of chakra blew away the mist, revealing a young long haired ninja with an ANBU mask and Zabuza.

"Good job, Sakura" said Kakashi.

"Looks like we've been found out, Haku, you take care of the brats" said Zabuza.

"Alright" replied the young ninja.

He came after Naruto at full speed while Zabuza went after Kakashi "Take this battle as far away as possible from Tazuna-san" commanded Kakashi. Naruto was knocked a few feet away, Sasuke sped in front of Naruto and engaged battle with Haku.

'This kid's fast' thought Haku.

Sasuke managed to kick him in the stomach that sent him flying backwards. Haku got up and prepared himself once more when he heard the missing nin say "Haku, use _that_ technique" the boy nodded. _That_ technique didn't sound good for the three of them.

Kakashi slashed his kunai to knock Zabuza's sword off when he noticed that ice walls were closing in on his subordinates. _That technique...!._ His eyes widened.

He was about to go and help Naruto and Sasuke when Zabuza attacked him with his sword.

"Not so fast, I can't let you interfere now that Haku has started that technique" said Zabuza.

"Kh…."

Naruto stood up, confused "Oi Sasuke, what's happening" said Naruto, looking at his teammate.

"I don't know" he replied. Haku rained them with needles once again with the same results of them dodging, suddenly a female voice sounded from outside the dome.

"Raiton, Rairyuu no Tatsumaki! (Lighting Technique, Lighting Dragon Tornado)" called Sakura, suddenly a electric dragon started forming, it broke one of the ice mirrors which immediately reformed. "That girl's going to be a problem" muttered Haku.

Sakura continued landing blows on the dome in hopes it would stop the technique.

Suddenly an attack took Sakura by surprise, Haku swept a kick at her, she dodged it whilst letting go of the technique, they engaged in a combat battle, Haku was too fast for Sakura, her muscles were still stiff from the training and she just couldn't read his movements.

The two genin took this chance to try and escape the dome, they were nearly through when Haku landed a kick in the kunoichi's gut, she flew backwards and crashed into the other two and just like that, they were knocked back into the dome.

"You okay? Sakura-chan" said Naruto.

Sakura coughed and pushed herself up "Yeah, I'm fine" she said with a wince.

"This is bad, we're all trapped in the dome" said Sasuke, on alert. Sakura got up, brushing off the help Naruto offered and almost immediately when they were showered with needles. They all reacted instantly, dodging the needles that ended stabbed into the ground. Sakura's eyes narrowed as she watched Haku transfer from one mirror to the other. Slowly taking his movement to analysis, she realized that she couldn't see him move after he leaves the mirror.

"Let's try something" she called after them.

They listened to her intently as she told them her plan, they nodded and Naruto immediately created five of his clones, they each ran to one of the gaps of dome, creating splashes on the leftover of the melted ice mirror.

Sakura and Sasuke remained where they are they formed some hand seals, Haku showered needles at all the Narutos while he was busy zooming around in incredible speed, Sasuke and Sakura was having a hard time pin pointing his location.

They noticed his movements through the water, whenever he passed the water would lessen "Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu" said both in unison.

They noticed that he was passing and quickly attacked, they didn't do much damage, they only grazed his pants, he came out and threw a needle at Naruto which had a direct hit and Naruto was thrown back with a needle in his right shoulder.

"Naruto, You okay?" said Sakura.

"Yea, somehow" he replied, standing.

"By the way Sakura, did you see that?" said Sasuke.

Sakura nodded "Yeah…. You shoot, I'll aim"

Sasuke nodded they looked at Naruto who was pulling out the needle, he flinched when he got it out.

"Naruto, we need you to do that again, this time send more shadow clones" said Sasuke.

He nodded "Kage bunshin no Jutsu" this time ten Narutos popped up, they all started running in different directions to get out of the dome.

Sasuke kicked the water to the air and both watched closely.

The water slowly moved "Now!" said Sakura.

"Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" said Sasuke, the huge fireball shot from his mouth, but it wasn't gonna hit Haku in time, Sakura ran to the far right of Sasuke.

"Fuuton, Kaze Bakufu! (Wind Technique, Wind Blast)" a blast of wind blew the fireball to Haku, it hit him but only his shoulder.

Sasuke fell on one knee while one of his hands held his knee to keep him up, Sakura was on both knee with both hands on the floor.

"How was that...?" asked Sakura, turning head her, her eyes widened with shock as one needle filled Naruto stood there."Heh heh, did you get that bastard?" asked Naruto, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth.

"Naruto…." Said Sakura.

Naruto fell on one of his knees, they were running out of chakra, Haku knew that and took this chance to attack, he zoomed around and showered them with needles. Their shrieks echoed in the mist.

Meanwhile, Kakashi caught wind of their cries and lost his concentration for a moment, "Heh heh, if you want to save those kids, you have to beat me first" said Zabuza, swinging his sword down on Kakashi.

He blocked it with a kunai but he didn't focus enough and the kunai was knocked off his hand and the sword slashed across his body. Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke was now filled with needles, their movements were greatly restricted and putting at a greater disadvantage.

Sasuke looked at his comrades then clenched his fist 'If only we could see where he was going to attack' he suddenly felt a stinging in eye, he blinked quickly a few times till it was unbearable and he shut his eyes. when he reopened them he could see things he normally wouldn't, like the flow of chakra, he looked at Sakura and Naruto, Sakura was running very low on chakra by Naruto's chakra was still fine, it had a sufficient amount to create another army shadow clones however he was the most severely injured out of them. "Sharingan huh" he muttered, a wide grin spreading across his lips as looked at his own hands. He looked back at Haku "Interesting" he said in a sinister chuckled.

Sakura looked over at Sasuke and found him looking around with red eyes "Sasuke-kun... your eyes" she said. Sasuke stood up, though his knees were still a little wobbly. "Yeah..." he said, his tone was trembling with excitement.

"Those eyes….. could it be…. A sharingan, it's already matured to 2 tomoe" he muttered to himself.

Sasuke ran towards Haku, forming hand seals while dodging the needles.

"Katon, Ryuuka no Jutsu" he said, flames were hurled at Haku in the shape of a dragon, it landed a direct hit on the latter and he landed on the floor, immediately getting back on his feet however he lost balance and that was all the time Sasuke needed to grab his hands and swing him off, Haku pushed against one of the mirror to counter impact, using the mirror to shoot back at Sasuke.

Sasuke braced himself, eyes watching only Haku. But he wasn't going to him.

"If I can't hit you, I just have to go with your comrades" called out Haku, Upon hearing that, Sasuke's eyes widened and he instinctively ran to his comrades, Naruto quickly moved in front of Sakura, expecting a piercing pain, he closed his eyes, he heard the needles make contact.

He didn't feel anything, he turned to look at Sakura to see if she was alright, but she had a shocked expression on her, he turned to see who she was looking at, his eyes immediately widened in shock. Sasuke was standing in front of him with needles were stabbed into his vital points, "Sasuke!" called Naruto.

Sasuke had his head hung low "What's wrong, Naruto... Scared again?" his tone was almost bitter. Naruto's hands fisted themselves, this was the second time he had to be protected by Sasuke. _Was he really that weak...! _Sasuke's head turned to look back at his comrades, his body beginning to sway "I leave Sakura to you" he said to Naruto. Gray spots danced in his vision before the darkness closed in

Naruto reacted and caught him before he could fall then placed him on the floor next to the paralyzed Sakura, she was trembling her green eyes widened as she slowly turned to look at the boy beside her. She reached out to him with her trembling hands then stroked his hair then stood up, "I'll kill you…." She said softly, her head hung low.

Haku pulled out the kunai that was stabbed into him by Sasuke "Your friend was clever, even after I hit his vital points, he was still able to stand and throw a kunai at me" said Haku.

He noticed something abnormal in his enemies chakra. It was, overflowing.

Sakura leaked green chakra all over the place, they lashed around violently, creating strong winds of its own. Her eyes weren't the usual bright shining emerald anymore, they were dull and empty, her body looked limp and droopy.

Naruto on the other hand was surrounded by a red ferocious chakra in the shape of a fox, his eyes were slit instead of round, and his pupil was red, his chakra was swirling upwards and a blast of wind was blowing against Haku.

Sakura and Naruto ran at him in incredible speed, he didn't even have time to think before he pummeled onto the floor. He flipped back on his feet and threw a few more needles at the approaching enemies but it was completely blown off with the overwhelming burst of chakra.

Sakura grabbed him by the collar and gave him a hard blow in the gut which sent him crashing out of the dome, once he was out the dome shattered into small sediments floating in air. Naruto gave him a skull bashing punch in the face and he was thrown back a hundred meters, he laid there unmoving, Naruto and Sakura's chakra slowly died down, their shoulders heaving.

They walked towards him, he slowly pushed himself up, they were ten feet away from each other.

"You people are pretty strong" said Haku, bitterly.

Naruto stepped up, fist clenched and ready to colliding with Haku's skull, Naruto vanished and then appeared in front of Haku, eyes fierce as he pulled his fist back. In that last moment Haku's eyes widened and his hand reached up to stop Naruto's punch.

"I'm sorry, There is something else I must do before I die" said Haku before he sped off.

Meanwhile…

Zabuza was getting held down by Kakashi's ninja hounds. Blood dripping from their teeth. "You didn't think I let you slash me by accident did you" said Kakashi. "So this is it huh?" Zabuza chuckled, looking down. "Tell me something" He looked up.

"What is it?"

"Was that outburst of chakra, you subordinate's?" said Zabuza, eyes narrowing. "Yeah, probably" Kakashi looked glanced over at the mist that thickened between them once again, because of that he couldn't be sure of his student's status.

"Then I guess Haku's dead" said Zabuza, for a moment he looked like he didn't care anymore.

"Too bad…" Kakashi drawled as he pointed his hand to the floor and a massive amount of electric chakra formed in his hand. "Raikiri!" The lightning lashed out and lit up his hand. "Any last words?" Kakashi offered.

"Nah"

Kakashi ran at Zabuza, but before the hand connect something sped in front of Zabuza. A young boy stood there, bloodstained, he coughed blood then grabbed Kakashi's hand. The ninja hounds disappeared, Zabuza grabbed his sword and swung it at Kakashi. Kakashi looked up at the incoming sword, eyes widened as he realized that the boy was holding him in place. He scowled and brought the boy along, escaping Zabuza's blade.

Kakashi laid down the boy, releasing his hand from him and looking at him sympathetically. "This boy's already dead, yet he still wants to protect that guy" he said before he brushed his hands over Haku's eyes, closing them.

Zabuza was behind Kakashi, he slashed his sword but Kakashi blocked it. "Don't you feel anything for your own subordinates" growled Kakashi

"He was just a weapon"

"He gave his life to save you"

"So what, that was his job" Zabuza retorted irritably, his muscles twitching.

"You thought of his as a weapon, he looked up to you"

"Shut up, Shut up, Shut up!" It was then he realized that he wasn't twitching. His arms were trembling, he couldn't understand why but there was a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach when he thought about Haku's sacrifice. He was angry. Angry at Kakashi for attacking him and leading to the death of Haku. In that moment he wanted to kill Kakashi so badly but some part of him knows that he was trying to use anger to cover his real feelings.

He was mourning for the death of Haku.

"Weren't you the one who trained him, considering he's such a skilled ninja at such a young age, you must've been with him since he was a kid" Kakashi pushed on.

"I don't want to hear anymore!" he fell to his knees, he dropped his sword.

Sakura and Naruto came running in to see an already dead Haku.

"Kakashi-sensei, what happened?" called Naruto, but before Kakashi could answer, a loud voice echoed in the silence. "You've failed me, Zabuza, I'll take it from here..." Gatou stood in the middle with an army of thugs standing behind him, the corner of his lips curved into a smirk as he pointed towards them "Get them! Kill them all!" he shouted.

Sakura and Naruto rushed to Tazuna's side, Kakashi faced the army of men Zabuza stood up, his blade scraping on the floor as he stood up with it.

The men charged at them. Shouting and yelling.

"Bring it on!" Naruto shouted.

Naruto made more than a hundred shadow clones and they all smirked, the men slowed down and halted "I guess we could have a little fun" said Kakashi, covering up his left eye.

"Kage bunshin no Jutsu, Kakashi style." said Kakashi.

The men took a step back, Zabuza swung his sword on his shoulder. "You're gonna pay Gatou" Zabuza deadpanned, eyes wild and bloodthirsty.

The men turned and ran, at the same time the ninjas charged at them and within five minutes the whole army was wiped out, all that's left was Gatou, Kakashi and the others let Zabuza handle him.

Kakashi turned to his subordinates with a questioned look "Where's Sasuke"

Naruto and Sakura looked down. Kakashi's eye widened "No..." his voice trailed and he rushed back. He looked down on his lifeless subordinate, Naruto and Sakura came walking next to him. "Sasuke..." muttered Kakashi. Tazuna patted Sakura on the shoulder "It's alright to cry….." he said.

"Rule number 25, A shinobi must never show emotion." she muttered, her eyes obstructed by her bangs. "I've watched and killed so many people, I never once cried." Sakura's shoulders began to tremble. "So why...! Why do the tears keep falling...?" Sakura's eyes were open as she stared down at Sasuke, the tears just kept on rolling down her cheeks.

"The life of a shinobi is cruel…" he muttered.

Sakura bit her lip and clenched a handful of her dress as she fell to her knees, burying her face in Sasuke's chest, wailing into his shirt. Naruto clenched his fist, he never enjoyed seem anyone cry, neither did he enjoy it himself. In the end he wasn't strong enough to protect Sasuke and Sakura.

Sakura's wailing stopped, she looked up from his shirt. Her upper body still lying on Sasuke. "Sasuke...?" she said. Tazuna thought she had gone mad.

Sasuke's finger twitched, it didn't go unnoticed for Naruto and Kakashi. "Sasuke!" Naruto called out to him. Sasuke's eyes opened just a little, "S-Sakura... you're heavy" he said in a strangled tone.

"The kid's not dead, Haku just put him in a temporary death state, that kid was always too soft" he said.

Sakura knelt beside Sasuke and he sat up, her eyes widened, she formed some hand seals "Chakra Hamekomi Jutsu (Chakra Insertion Technique)" she placed her hand on his chest and the needles shot out of his body. Just barely avoid hitting everyone.

He groaned and winced in pain, She sighed in relief and smiled at him, he raised an eyebrow at her before he looked up to see a smug expression on his teammate, Naruto flashed him a thumbs up, he smirked and did the same.

Kakashi looked at Zabuza then asked "So what are you gonna do now, continue working for the corrupted?"

"Nah, I've had enough of scumbags like Gatou, I'm going to hang around this village, see what happens to it."

"Repenting for your sins huh, so unlike you" said Kakashi. Zabuza scoffed "Shut up"

They gave Haku a proper funeral and went to Tazuna's house to recover before they return back to Konoha, Tazuna allowed Zabuza to stay at his house till he finds some place to stay.

After a few day of staying in, the three ninja's visited the grand bridge's opening and will be the first to cross it, they were thinking of a name for the bridge when they came up with, The Haku bridge.

The villagers thanked the ninjas and they waved them off.

"I can't wait to get home" said Naruto, stretching his hand over his head. Suddenly a thought came to Sasuke's mind "What's going to happen to Sakura if we head back to Konoha" he said.

"Hmmm, I guess we will have to return her to the Iwagakure" said Kakashi,

"What?" Naruto burst out loud. Sasuke scowled.

"Well that's the only right thing to do" said Kakashi.

"If she has to return back to Iwagakure when we get to konoha, then I'd rather not return" huffed Naruto, crossing his hands. "She works well with us, she can be of use in the future" said Sasuke with his eyes closed.

Sakura's eyes widened slightly. They just happened to stumble into her during their mission, they had barely been with her for a few days. She was just a stray. It surprised that they're willing to go so far for her.

"Then what if I do this" said Kakashi, appearing behind Sakura and placing a kunai on her neck.

Sakura's eyes widened, her body reacted instantly. Her palm shot up and knocked Kakashi's hand out of the way. The older shinobi wasted no time to grab both the kunoichi's arms and twisted them back, pinning them together behind her back. Sakura couldn't help by yelp at the pain shooting up her arms.

Sasuke and Naruto armed themselves only to point their kunai back at their own necks. "You're going to be travelling back alone if you harm her" Sasuke's eyes narrowed dangerously at his teacher. "Yeah! Sakura-chan's one of us now! You can't just throw her overboard!" Naruto snapped.

Kakashi released Sakura "You pass" he told his team.

Naruto tilted his head in confusion "Hah?" Sasuke slipped the kunai back into his pouch as if he knew all along that it was a test.

"I never had any intention in returning Sakura back to Iwagakure, I just wanted to see your reactions" shrugged Kakashi. "Then what's really going to happen to her" said Naruto.

"I'll request for her to take the academy graduation test, and if she passes, she will complete the three man cell" said Kakashi. Sakura's eyes widened in shock "R-Really?" she stammered, beginning to doubt her grip on reality.

"Yeah" Said Kakashi, nodding. Sakura threw herself at Kakashi "Thank you so much... Kakashi-san" Kakashi grinned at the two jealous ninjas as they glared at him.

"It's sensei to you now" he said, ruffling her hair. "Kakashi…. sensei" said Sakura, her smile widened. She liked the sound of that. Kakashi told Sakura what to do for the graduation test along the way to Konoha.

"But wait, is it legal for me to enter a village without citizenship?" said Sakura.

"Well, I don't think Iwagakure has proof to come and claim you, they hid you underground since birth and barely anyone knows of your existence, so you're safe to enter a village and gain citizenship" said Kakashi.

They stopped in front of Konoha, Sakura felt her both trembling with excitement, she had never seen a village before. As soon as they were in, she pranced around looking at everything in sight but soon when they reached the hokage office, she parted with her soon-to-be teammates. "Good luck, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said rather loudly. Sakura smiled at him and then her eyes glanced over at Sasuke.

The raven head caught her staring and a warmth crept up to his cheeks before he jerked his head away from her, pouting a little as he said "You'll do fine" Sakura's eyes lit up and she gave a firm nod before Kakashi brought her away.

Sasuke and Naruto decided to hang around in the village before going home. "Do you think Sakura-chan will pass the test?" Naruto asked, lying on a park bench.

"She isn't like you" a voice replied from above. (No, not god) Sasuke was leaning against a tree on a branch with one of his legs propped up and his hand draped on his knee. "You're right…" Naruto paused, his head snapped at Sasuke "Hey!" he shouted "Idiot" Sasuke snorted. "Sasuke, Do you…. Like…. Sakura-chan. In a girlfriend kind of way" said Naruto, sounding a little nervous.

Sasuke snorted "No way…." though his face was completely red when he said it. He glanced down at Naruto. "And you do?" though it was more of a statement than a question. Naruto turned red "Y-yeah" he couldn't stop the cheeky grin that had appeared when he said that.

Sasuke snorted "I doubt she'd want a man like you"

"Shut up"

"Hn." Sasuke smirked

After awhile of arguing, they decided to go home when dusk came, Sasuke walked back to the Uchiha District and walked all the way to the deepest part of the district where the house of the head was built. He'd always go into a rather depressed mood whenever he walk down this path. It reminded him of how alone he really was.

After the war, there was nothing much left of the clan. A whole battalion of Uchihas were wiped out by an Amegakure ambush. There were no survivors. His parents were killed in the war as well, his brother was all he had. The elderly Uchihas were still around, but that was all. There weren't any more young clan members. Sometimes he wondered if his clan was just going to fade away and he'd be unable to do anything about it.

He stepped into the mansion ground, walking through the untrimmed garden to get to the door. "I'm home…." He muttered as he entered. 'Well not like anyone's going to answer' he thought just then he heard thumping footsteps.

His muscles tensed awake, it couldn't have been his brother. His brother doesn't make footstep sounds when he walks.

"Welcome back" said a female voice as she appeared down the corridor, he froze, he knew that voice. He looked up. His eyes met with a pair of familiar emerald eyes.

"Sasuke-kun?" "Sakura?" they said in unison.

"What are you doing here….?" Said Sasuke, he looked down at her attire, she was wearing a dull crimson dress that reached slightly below her knees, there is a cut all the way up till her hip, she wore shorts inside and she has the konoha headband on, but she wore it like a hair band.

She kept her red stringed kunai in a holster around her ankle. It was around her ankles and she held her hair needle. "She's gonna be living with us, hokage-sama's request" said a man from behind Sakura.

"Nii-san?" said Sasuke looking pass Sakura.

"Itachi-san is Sasuke-kun's onii-sama?" she said, looking back and forth the brother, a delighted smile crossed her face as she clasps her hands together "You two look alike"

"It seems you have already met her, why don't you show her around her house and to the empty room that we don't use" said Itachi. "Hn." he looked at Sakura then signaled her to follow him. She walked behind him happily, Sasuke was smiling with his head down, hoping that she wouldn't notice.

Sasuke showed her to her room, the room was standard sized. It had a queen sized bed in the middle with an empty desk to the left of the door after you walk in and a wardrobe next to the toilet door. Sasuke stepped in as he held the door open for her, Sakura looked a little afraid to step in. Her steps were slow and cautious as she looked around. "Wow... So this is a room" she breathed.

Sasuke shrugged as she ran around, opening drawers and doors till she finally tripped and flopped on the bed. She shot up to her feet "So soft" she said, sounding a little freaked out. She reached out to stroke the surface of the bed. A shove came from behind her, sending up tumbling back onto the bed. Sasuke stood there, stifling his laughter.

Sakura laughed and rolled over on the bed, she reached out to tug Sasuke down with her. "Ah!" He fell right next to her. Sakura laughed as they laid still, hands still linked without their knowing. Sakura rolled over to her side to face Sasuke.

"I've got an idea, why don't I teach you how to walked on water as thanks for letting me stay you" said Sakura.

"Hn"

Sakura chuckled and stepped onto the water creating ripples with each of her footstep.

"Just pump chakra to your foot, this is a little harder to master than tree climbing, because the chakra you need to emit will constantly change, but once you get the hang of it, it's actually very easy" said Sakura.

Sasuke looked at her doubtfully then shrugged and stepped on the water, he fell right in, after a few seconds.

Sakura giggled and Sasuke glared at her, she desperately tried to hold her laughter.

He tried again, and again…. And again…. And again, when finally he manages to hold for a few minutes before he dropped.

Itachi passed by when he heard laughter, he took a peek at the lake, he saw Sasuke flinging water at Sakura while his head stuck up in the water. Sakura was busying laughing as she tried to shield herself from the barrage of water. He smirked and snuck away.

Sakura helped Sasuke till it was dark, he still couldn't stand for a long period of time but they decided to stop for today.

They left trails of water as they walked into the house, both tired and wet. Sasuke stopped Sakura just outside her room "Wait here" He told her.

He came back a few moments later with a folded towel in his hand. He handed it to her "Go take a warm shower before you catch a cold" he said, looking a little uncomfortable as he rubbed the back of his neck as Sakura took the towel.

Sakura smiled at him "Thanks, Sasuke-kun"

"Just Sasuke is fine" Sasuke said as he walked into his room and closed the door behind him.

Sakura blushed a little as she muttered to herself "Sa...suke"

Next morning…

Her eyelids fluttered open and she sat up, rubbing her eyes, her body stiffened when she heard a splash, she jumped out of bed and went to the window.

She saw Sasuke leaning back with his hands behind him and one knee bending up, his hair was dripping wet but the sun was shining on him, making the droplets sparkle.

Sakura felt her cheeks heat up and her pulse quickened. _'I feel weird, am I sick?'_

Sasuke was staring blankly at the lake before a towel was dropped neatly on his wet hair, he felt fingers ruffling his wet hair. Sasuke knew who was the culprit, because his brother would never do something like this, and the only person left is _her_.

"S-Sakura?" his stammered.

"Hee hee, you're working hard aren't you" said Sakura.

Sasuke kept quiet.

"So, how's the progress" said Sakura, lifting the towel off his head" she said. "Mastered it" he answered proudly."Oh really?" Sakura said with a challenging look on her face. He got up on his feet and stepped down on the water.

There was silence for a while, and when Sasuke didn't fall it, Sakura clapped her hands. "As expected of Sasuke, already mastered it within a day" she smiled

He stepped back on to the wooden walkway. "Make sure to go take a warm shower" she said. "What are you, my mother?" Sasuke scoffed. Sakura pouted "I'm not that old, I can be your wife too you know" she said with pursed lips. Sasuke glanced at her, alarmed and his face glowing red. He turned away roughly "As if" he said. Sakura chuckled as she followed him back into the house.

They passed the kitchen and Sakura took a glimpse of the stove, she approached it cautiously "Sasuke" she said. Sasuke turned and looked back "What is it"

"What is this machine? It looks interesting" said Sakura as she traced her fingers on the cold stove. Sasuke walked over "It's a stove, move your hand" he said. Sakura lifted her hands from the stove and watched as Sasuke turned a knob and flames lit. Sakura's eyes lit up with fascination "Wow, the flames start up without firewood" she said.

"We use this to cook things" Sasuke reached up to the cupboard and pulled out a pan and placed it on the stove. "Then you just put the food on the pan to cook it" Sasuke explained briefly before turning off the stove. "Try not to play with it too much, it burns" he said before leaving for upstairs.

Absolutely fascinated with his contraption, Sakura decided to play around a little.

For the whole morning, Sakura had been cooped up in her room

Till Sasuke knocked on her door and opened it, "Sakura, Kakashi wants us to meet up at- what are you reading" he said staring down at the book on the bed, he didn't remember giving her anything to read.

"A cook book, I found it in the library, hope you don't mind" she said. "No one ever goes to the library" snorted Sasuke. "Is there a mission?" asked Sakura, shutting the book and rolling off her stomach and off the bed. "Probably just a meeting" said Sasuke.

"Where are we meeting?" Sakura asked, getting change. Sasuke sighed and turned his back on her to not look. Living with her was going to be harder than he thought.

"The vacant spot behind Yura bar" said Sasuke.

"Ah, Naruto doesn't know that I passed the test, does he?" asked Sakura. "I don't think so"

Back at the vacant spot, Naruto was pacing back and forth, wondering if Sakura had made the test or not, whether she slept well, did she get kicked out? Did she have a place to stay?

Suddenly he heard a familiar voice "Yo, loser…" Sasuke walked over to him. "I'm not in the mood to argue with you, teme" said Naruto, still pacing back and forth.

"Wondering if Sakura made it?" he asked, though it sounded more like a statement than a question. "Yeah! Aren't you worried?" Naruto asked loudly. Sasuke shrugged "I found out her results this morning" he lied

Naruto grabbed his collar and pulled him closer to his face "Tell me" he commanded. Sasuke feigned depression "She didn't make it" Naruto looked too shocked to move.

"No…. way…. They sent her back?"

"Yeah…"

Naruto took a few stumbling steps back then fell on the floor, face front before he heard soft laughter erupting from the tree branch. He raised his head from the floor, seeing a pink headed kunoichi smiling down on him. "S-Sakura-chan?" he said, surprised then looked to Sasuke "Sasuke teme! You lied to me!" said Naruto, getting up on his knees and getting ready to pounce. Sasuke printed the soles of his shoes onto Naruto's face "It was her idea, idiot"

"I'm sorry- Naruto- I just wanted to see you reaction" said Sakura between laughs.

A Kakashi suddenly appeared in a bust of smoke."You guys look like you're having fun"

Sasuke glanced to the side at Kakashi. "You're early"

"Oh I am? Then I'll come back in a few hours" said Kakashi. Naruto and Sasuke glared at him, he raised his hands in surrender "It was a joke, geez"

Kakashi threw a pouch up to Sakura who was still on the tree branch "Equipment you'll need" he said. Sakura caught it and placed it on her lap and checking on the variety of weapons in it. Her face brightened "These are going to be useful"

"You didn't summon us here just to give Sakura her pouch, did you" said Sasuke. "Is there a mission?" said Sakura, securing the pouch around her hip."Yeah, the chuunin exams are closing in, and I have put down a recommendation to let squadron 7 take the exam" said Kakashi.

"Hey wait, Kakashi-sensei, isn't Sakura a new genin" said Naruto.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at Naruto. "Oh? But I'm pretty sure she'll have you on your back within 5 seconds into the battle, Naruto" said Kakashi in a mocking tone. Naruto sneered at his sensei then looked up at Sakura who smiled and waved at him. He gulped, Kakashi was right. Sakura might be able to do that.

"So, when's the exam" said Sasuke."Two weeks from now" said Kakashi."So that's all?" said Naruto."Oh no, we have to find the land lady's Tora-chan again" said Kakashi.

Naruto fell and Sasuke smacked his forehead "Again…." They muttered.

Sakura tilted her head to the side "Who's Tora-chan"

"A very lost cat" answered Sasuke.

"Ano ne! We just kicked hidden mist butt a few days ago!" said Naruto.

"But that doesn't change the fact that you are still genin" said Kakashi.

Sasuke and Naruto sighed.

Next Chapter

"Yeah! The exams are finally here!"

"Good Luck"

"OHHH! You are the most beautiful girl I have ever seen!"

" I'm not backing down now, c'mon old man, give me that question, I'll answer it"

"Hi you little amateur freaks, I'm Mitarashi Anko, follow me to the forest of death"

* * *

**Did you enjoy reading this as much as I did re-writing it? :3**

**I loved the respond I got for the questions, there were so many different answers. **

**All of you answered Sasuke for Chapter 1's question, I don't blame you guys. I chose Sasuke too XD **

**There were surprisingly a variety of characters for Chapter 2's question, Hyuga Neji and Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Sasuke were put in a tie with 2 person voting them best looking. Gaara, Naruto, Minato, I was surpised that Shisui entered the ranks considering he doesn't appear much. **

**I was also surprised when NONE said that Kakashi is best looking, because personally Kakashi is best looking to me although he lacks the presence of his features I find that that adds on to his look. Very mysterious man :3**

**I had loads of fun reading different answers from everyone so here's another question for you guys!**

**Question :**

**Who do you think is the best looking female character in the series?**

**Yes I know it's a little boring, I'm not very creative with questions XD **


	4. Chuunin Exams

**Hello guys! I have another chapter of the prequel 'A Different Story' but now known as 'Red Thread' Info for new readers :D This chapter is epicly long, you can just scroll through, I'm reeeeeally sorry for those of you that don't like long chapters. Enjoy! See you at the end of the chapter! I hope**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto!**

* * *

**Chuunin Exams**

Naruto stood still, dumbfounded when he found out that Sakura is currently staying at Sasuke's house in the Uchiha District till she finds a place of her own. The third hokage seemed to have been debriefing Itachi for another mission when Sakura came in with Suzume with confirmation of her test results so the hokage decided to hand the responsibility down to the Uchiha district since the hokage quotes 'Too peaceful there'

"B-But Sakura-chan, isn't it a bit dangerous for you to be staying there. You ARE living with Sasuke the bastard, you know?" said Naruto, jabbing a thumb at Sasuke for emphasis. Sasuke glared at the back of his blond teammate's head.

But before Sakura could speak, Naruto's face lit up with an idea "I know! You can come live with me! It's way safer than living with that perverted bastard" Naruto offered. Sasuke threw a rock at Naruto's head, knocking it with a loud _thonk_. "Huh, Looks like your head really _is _hollow" Sasuke smirked victoriously as he dodged a very angry Naruto and retreated up a tree. "You're a real bastard, Sasuke, you know that?" said Naruto, rubbing the lump on his head.

Sakura looked back and forth Naruto and Sasuke "Do you guys ever stop fighting?" she asked them. "Yeah, when I die" Sasuke answered. "I'd rather jump off a cliff than get along with him" said Naruto. "Shouldn't we do some training before the exams? It sounds like a big deal, it's probably not like that shinobi exam I took when I got here right?" said Sakura. "Of course it's not! Jumping up from Genin to Chuunin is like a step closer to being Hokage!" said Naruto as he pumped up his fist.

Sakura's eyes lit up "Whoa... then we'll have to train hard. I know! Lets invite Naruto over, Sasuke" said Sakura, looking towards Sasuke. "What?" Sasuke's eyes snapped up, his face clearly disagreeing with Sakura. "Hell yeah! I'll be there first thing in the morning!"

"Great!" Sakura chirped. They parted ways soon after that conversation. While Sakura and Sasuke were walking home, Sakura halted right in front of a grocery store. Stealing a glimpse of the inside as people entered and exited the store. Sasuke stood close by, wondering what was she thinking. "What a peculiar place, so many different smells coming from it" she muttered to herself then turned to Sasuke "Sasuke, can I buy something from here?" she asked.

Sasuke gave her and odd look but agreed nonetheless.

They exited the store with a very happy looking Sakura, hugging a paper bag filled with food. "Sorry for making you pay, Sasuke. I return the favor once I start earning money from missions" she said. Sasuke shrugged "Try not to burn down the house if you're going to cook" he said. He was well aware of where this girl came from and he doubted that they taught her how to cook when they trained her in a cave.

Sakura giggled "I'll try"

When they reached home, Sakura disappeared off into the kitchen. Sasuke walked past the kitchen, catching a glimpse of Sakura as she trotted around the kitchen, looking for things and washing the dusty utility. He wondered if it would be okay for him to leave her alone in the kitchen. But after seeing her handle a set of kitchen knives like she was playing with toys, he figured it would be alright for him to leave and continue with his training.

The kitchen wasn't far from the backyard, to get to the backyard, all you had to go was to walk past the empty living room and open the paper sliding door and you'd be able to see the lake.

The night came quickly and Sasuke was, once again. Soaked to the bone but he had gotten used to standing on water nonetheless, as expected of the Uchiha prodigy. Sakura was just about done with decorating the plate with tomato bunnies and cabbage.

She looked up from her work and saw Sasuke watching her with water dripping from him. "You must be sick of getting wet huh, Sasuke" said Sakura with a smile. "Dinner's ready so, help yourself. I'll go get you a towel" Sakura trotted out of the kitchen, leaving Sasuke and the table of different dishes.

Sakura came back to see Sasuke munching around on the dishes she left on the table with a fork, still standing. Her face lit up as she approached him "How is it" she asked him eagerly. Sasuke looked surprised by Sakura's presence before lowering his head. "It's good" he muttered softly.

A wide smile broke out upon her features as those two words made her happier than anyone could imagine. She allowed Sasuke to eat before telling him to go take a warm shower. "You're beginning to sound just like my mother" Sasuke sighed. Sakura smiled "I'll take that as a compliment"

Sasuke smirked and disappeared up the stairs. Sakura washed the dishes as she began to drown her mind in her thoughts. 'The chuunin exams…. Huh'

Soon, their two weeks were up. They spent the whole time on training as they were not sent for missions due to being chuunin candidate, they arrived outside the examination hall, brimming with confidence, although Naruto was the only one that was glowing. The village was rather lively as genins from other ally villages have come to take the exams as well.

They were told that the exams only come once every half a year and this time, Konoha was chosen to host it. So now the village was filled with unfamiliar faces.

"Geez I can't wait to take the test. I wonder what are they going to make us do. Fight a beast? Or maybe even take on the third hokage!" Naruto rambled. Sasuke snorted "Then have fun peeing yourself in fear, loser" said Sasuke. "Sasuke, you bastard!"

Naruto and Sasuke continued to argue till Kakashi finally arrived to stop them. "You kids can't do one day without squabbling like an old couple, can you?" Kakashi sighed. "You're too slow, Kakashi-sensei! Everyone's already inside!" Naruto yelled. "I think I'm infected with Naruto's idiocy" Sasuke scowled. "Hey!"

Kakashi cut in before another fight would break out "Here are your identification cards, just go in hall 5 and sit accordingly to the seat number on your cards, don't cause any trouble, good luck" he said before giving them a wave and then bursting into a puff of smoke.

"I'm kind of nervous" said Sakura, taking a look at her card. "You'll be fine, you can rely on me if anything happens" Naruto said. "Don't, you'll fail" said Sasuke. Naruto glared at Sasuke before both their hands were grabbed by Sakura. "Let's not worry about that for now, we need to go in" Sakura said, dragging her teammates behind her.

They were walking through the lobby which was now empty when Sakura felt someone eyeing her, she was about to turn around before something green appeared in front of her and stole her hands from her.

"OOOOOOH! In my entire youth, I have never seen a more beautiful girl!" said a weird looking guy with a bowl cut. Sakura looked at him questionably. He looked intently into her eyes. "May I know the name bestowed upon such a beautiful goddess of youth?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the green jumpsuit guy's hands, he was irritated but he didn't really get why.

Sakura opened her mouth to speak when Naruto interrupted "What's the big deal, bushy-brows, don't go around grabbing other people's teammate's hands" said Naruto.

Only then did bushy brows take notice of Sasuke and Naruto's presence, his freakishly round eyes narrowed down on Sasuke. "Uchiha Sasuke" he said in a serious tone. "If it is okay with you, I would like to challenge you to a duel, I'd like to know where my skills stand against a prodigy" he said.

Sasuke looked amused as he turned his body to face Lee. "Fair enough, I'm not in a good mood now anyway" he smirked. "Sasuke, now's not the-" Sakura was cut off when Naruto shouted at Lee "You don't need Sasuke to take you down, I just need 5 minutes" Naruto snapped then charged at Lee. "You are not the one I wish to fight" the challenger said. Naruto threw punch and immediately it was struck down by Lee's hand, knocking Naruto off balance. Falling to the ground, Naruto used his hands to hold himself up so that he could recover and swing a kick at Lee.

Lee leaned back and easily dodged Naruto's kick before ducking down and swiping his legs across Naruto's hands "Konoha Violent Wind!" Causing Naruto to tumble down and spin uncontrollably on his back before finally coming to a stop when he collided with the wall. "Naruto!" Sakura called

Lee immediately went for Sasuke. Sakura's eyes widened as he rushed past her 'He's fast…!' Sasuke immediately lifted his hands to block Lee's attack but instead of a straight forward attack. Lee disappeared down and the next thing Sasuke knew, he was sent flying through the air. Wincing, Sasuke struggled to regain control before he saw Lee, jumping up to him.

Then out of nowhere he suddenly jerked to the side and tackled out of the air before Lee could reach him. They tumbled across the floor and finally coming to a stop. He got up and looked behind him to see Sakura do the same. Lee was about to make his next move before his teammates and teacher arrived. "Lee!"

"Tenten, Neji" he said, shocked by their appearance. Another voice sounded "Lee! What have you done!" Lee looked up see his identical teacher, standing on the railing before jumping down in front of him "Gai-sensei!" his face immediately lit up with admiration on the older man in the exact same green jumpsuit and the exact same bowl cut.

"Lee! You shouldn't have challenged a fellow candidate to a duel just before the exam" his teacher seemed to be scolding him yet it didn't seem like it. Lee looked astonished "I shouldn't have?" he said. Gai shook his head "You will get a chance to test yourself in the exam, you might be sparring with him. Till then, you must keep your cool. That is how it is supposed to be in your springtime of youth!" Gai raised his volume as he spoke, till finally he exploded.

Waterfalls of tears ran from Lee's eyes "I'm so sorry, Gai-sensei! I WAS FOOLISH!" Lee sobbed. Naruto and Sasuke stared at them, eye twitching and a little grossed out. A hand was placed on Lee's shoulder, he looked up to meet Gai's eyes that were filled with tears. "It's alright, Lee. Mistakes are also a part of your youth" Gai gave him a thumbs up before they threw themselves at each other.

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

A girl with two buns tried on top of her head approached Sakura who was standing with Sasuke. "I'm sorry about that, they're always that embarassing" the girl said. She smiled at Sakura "I'm Tenten from Team Gai. I haven't seen you before" Tenten reached out a hand to Sakura. Sakura returned the smile and shook her hand. "Ah, it's because I only came to this village just recently. I'm Haruno Sakura from Team Kakashi"

Gai's attention turned to Sakura. "Team Kakashi? If I remember correctly, Team Kakashi had only two members" he said. "That would mean they had found a third member. Tch, foreigner" Neji mumble. "Neji! You're being rude" Tenten snapped. The boy with the brown hair snorted and turned away.

Lee approached them and then bowed to Sasuke "A thousand apologizes for my rude actions, Uchiha-san. I'm Rock Lee. I hope that one day we would be able to spare again" he straightened and looked seriously at Sasuke before his eyes lingered to Sakura and he turned red. "OOOOH! No matter how many times I look at you, YOU ARE TRULY AN ANGEL OF YOUTH! AHHHH IT'S SO GOOD TO BE ALIVE AND YOUTHFUL!" he grabbed Sakura by her hands once more.

Sakura gave him a meek smile before her eyes gleamed with seriousness "You were seriously going to injure Sasuke, weren't you" it sounded off more like a statement than a question. Lee looked taken aback before his shoulders slump and he began to emit a gloomy atmosphere. "I see… I must have caused you worry for your teammates, for that I am sorry. I know I won't be able to make up for it with my youth but from this day onwards, I WILL PROTECT THIS CHERRY BLOSSOM OF YOUTH WITH ALL MY MIGHT TILL THE DAY I DIE AS REPENTION FOR WHAT I HAVE DONE!"

Tears began to overwhelm Gai and Lee once more.

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

Tenten sighed and then gave Sakura a weary smile "Well then, I'll see you in the hall, Sakura-san. Good luck later on" she gave her a wave before disappearing in the next step, along with her teammates.

"What interesting people" Sakura laughed lightly. Sasuke and Naruto shuddered "Eyebrows…."

Suddenly they heard rapid footsteps and a high pitched female voice "SAAASUKE-KUN~"

Sasuke turned and a light blonde female glomped onto him, his expression immediately fell and his eye twitched as the girl squealed into his ear "I missed you so much! Sasuke-kun~" the girl squealed. "Get off, Ino" Sasuke deadpanned. Ino pouted before she noticed someone staring at her. Ino looked over and scowled at Sakura "What are you looking at?" she snapped rudely.

Sakura had a faint tint of red brushed across her cheeks as she blinked a few times when Ino snapped at her. "Oh I'm sorry. It's just that I didn't know Sasuke had a girlfriend" she said, sound a little nervous. "She's not my girlfriend"

"So what if I'm his girlfriend" Ino snapped again, as if trying scare Sakura off.

"You're very pretty" Sakura smiled with a little tilt of her head. Ino blushed and a wide smile immediately crossed her face "My, Sasuke-kun. Who is this adorably honest and polite girl?" she said as she clasped her hands together and fawned over Sakura.

Naruto and Sasuke twitched 'Honest...?'

"I'm Yamanaka Ino, you must be squadron 7's new member. I didn't know there was already a graduate batch, did you skip grades?" asked Ino.

"Ah, I'm not from Konohagakure. I'm Haruno Sakura. I met Team Kakashi outside the village" Sakura replied. "Oh, that would explain why I have never seen you before" said Ino.

Soon two other guys caught up with Ino "Geez, Ino don't just disappear off like" an irritated and lazy voice said followed by the crunching sounds of chips. Ino turned to face her teammates "Oh, what took your guys so long, we're going to be late for the exam" said Ino she looked at Sakura then at her teammates "These are my teammates, that spiky haired prick is Nara Shikamaru and the one eating is Akimichi Chouji" she introduced them to Sakura

Sakura bowed her head slightly "I'm team kakashi's new member, Haruno Sakura" she said. "Sakura is new in the village" said Ino. "That would explain it" said Shikamaru. "It's nyh tu meht yu (It's nice to meet you)" Chouji said with his mouth full. "Since we're all candidates, let's walk together" Ino said but mainly to Sasuke but he was already walking.

"Ah! No fair, Sasuke! A head start!" Naruto shouted and chased after Sasuke. Once they reached the room, due to Naruto's overexcitement he accidentally used to much strength to open the door and causing a low slam and gaining them some unwanted attention.

A few of them turned their heads to inspect the new incoming candidates with grouchy looks on their faces. Ino swallowed and looked around nervously. "There has to be at least shinobi from 5 different villages gathered here" muttered Shikamaru. "They seem... tough" she said.

And that's when a loud voice sounded in the mumbling.

"Listen here you punks, I, Uzumaki Naruto am gonna kick all your asses in this exam" Naruto

Sasuke smacked his palm on his forehead while Ino, Shikamaru and Chouji stared at him unbelievingly. Sakura just laughed a little.

"That idiot" said Sasuke.

Every head in the room turned to them and danger began to arouse in the atmosphere. Way up on the third row was a very nervous Hinata fiddling with her fingers as she blushed, trying to 'steal' glances of Naruto when it was clear that she was staring at him.

As they scattered around the class, looking for their respective seats. Sakura felt a chill down her spine as she caught someone staring directly at her before he whistled and offered her a wink. Sakura felt her breathing hitch as she stumbled a step backwards nervously.

Then she felt someone take hold of her hand "Your seat is just a seat behind my right." Sasuke said as he brought her to her seat. Sakura immediately forgot about the discomfort and thanked Sasuke for showing her to her seat.

Sasuke glanced over at the Kusa-nin that tried to court Sakura who clicked his tongue and turned away in annoyance. Sasuke felt a satisfactory smirk on his face as he sat down.

Sakura looked to see if Naruto had any troubles finding his seat only to see sitting next to Hinata, ironically. He seemed to be comfortably around her as he spoke with her.

A few moments later an intimidating man with scars on his face walked in and the chuunin examiners began handing out papers.

"I am Morino Ibiki your first examiner, Okay, you will all complete this written test in within 50 minutes, and anyone caught cheating 5 times, or if you don't answer at least half of the paper, you and your teammates will be sent out with a fail, and there are ten questions, but there are only 9 written in the paper, the tenth question will be given afterwards." said Ibiki.

'A written test?! No way, I wasn't prepared for this' thought Naruto. 'That loser definitely isn't prepared for this' Sasuke thought. 'So I just have to answer the questions on a piece of paper...?' Sakura thought.

"You may begin now…." Said Ibiki, the genins turned over their paper and froze.

On the back of the paper were advanced questions that was nearly impossible for a genin to answer were written on the paper. Sasuke's eyes scanned the question one by one 'There is no way they are asking genins to answer this' he thought as he realized that he didn't know the answer to any of the questions, how would Naruto be able to do it. He glanced around to see that a few of the genins have already started cheating. Sasuke scowled 'Naruto, you have to cheat' he thought.

'Oh I'm so screwed…..' thought Naruto as he held his head between his hands as he panicked.

Meanwhile, Sakura was in the middle of reading one of the questions.

_If a kunai is thrown from a tree branch approximate 78 meters away at a speed of 245 meters per second and then deflected with a katana of 0.4 meters in length and a swing of 7.7 mach. State the angle of its deflection and the approximate distance of its landing from the deflector. Explain your answer._

'It seems like all these questions are common sense, I was worried for nothing' thought Sakura as she easily wrote down the answer and her explanation and then moved on to the next question.

Sasuke was already halfway through the paper with his sharingan activated eyes locked on to the guy in front of him, syncing his movements with him.

'What am I gonna do, Sakura-chan and Sasuke will be kicked out with me if I can't answer this' thought Naruto, clutching is head in his hands and sweating like a wet dog.

"Pss… Naruto-kun"

Naruto's ear perks when he heard a voice. Mechanically he turned towards his neighbor, Hinata had a serious look on her face as she said "Copy my answers"

Naruto felt like boulders were lifted off of him. "You sure?" Hinata gave him a very slight but firm nod. He leaned a little closer to take a look, suddenly an examiner called out "Number 23 and team, exit the examination hall"

Naruto froze, after that a few more numbers were called. In that few moments nearly half the shinobi in the hall had left. He frowned, if they were to get caught he'd be dragging Hinata down with him along with his teammates and hers. "What are you waiting for?" whispered Hinata, snapping the blond out of his thoughts.

"I don't need to copy your answers" he whispered back. Hinata shot him a questioned look. "Besides, I'm the number one ninja, something like this is a piece of cake, and I don't want you getting into trouble because of me" he said with a grin.

Hinata's cheeks flushed, then she turned back to her paper "O-Okay then, if you say so"

Naruto kept his grin, till he turned back to the paper, his face turned blue-ish.

'Why did I say that?!' he thought forcefully.

Sasuke noticed Naruto's trembling figure realized that can't be a good sign. 'Come on, just cheat, Naruto!' he mentally yelled at him, hoping that if he thought hard enough, Naruto would get the message.

Naruto, was banging his brain and hoped that the answers will magically appear.

But they didn't and soon his time was up

"Place your pencils down" Ibiki said. Naruto panicked 'I haven't even written a freaking thing on my paper'

Ibiki nodded as he finished counting the number of those left "We've got too many people, ok, time for the last question, you have a choice, to choose whether you want to take the question or you don't, but if you do and you can't answer it, you will remain a genin for the rest of your life, if you don't and give up now, your teammates will have to leave the examination room" said Ibiki.

There were whispers across the room and teammates signaling each other. However Team Kakashi didn't need to say anything to one another, their resolve was fixed. At least most of them were.

Many got off and walked out and soon the room was left with half of what it was.

There was a hand raising at the front of the class and Sakura and Sasuke recognized it as their teammate's. 'Naruto, you idiot. I'm going to slice off your arm!' Sasuke thought desperately. Sakura began to feel nervous as she never thought that Naruto was the time of person to give up.

Then he suddenly the hand was slammed back down on the table which made everyone jump. "I'm not backing down now, c'mon old man, give me that question, I'll answer it" he declared proudly. Shocked by his sudden outburst, Sasuke smirked and Sakura muffled a giggle. 'As expected of Naruto'

Ibiki raised his eyebrows "Very well, is that all? Anyone else wants to leave?" No one moved. Ibiki nodded "Fine, you have all passed and will be moving on to the next exam"

Naruto thrust his fist into the air, yelling in victory along with some of the other genins. Sasuke had to admit that his stoic self was relieved when Ibiki told them that they passed. He glanced back at Sakura to see how she was doing and she returned it with a smile.

And then someone crashed through the window. Shattering the glass and standing proudly on the debris and a banner rolled down from the ceiling as well as the multiple pops of the confetti.

"Celebration's over you little amateur freaks, I'm Mitarashi Anko your next examiner, follow me to the forest of death" she declared at disappeared out the window with the genins following.

"Does she always have to make such a flashy entrance" Ibiki sighed then looked at one of the chuunin invigilators. The middle nin merely shrugged with a wry smile. "You may leave, I'll collect the papers"

"Yes sir"

As Ibiki went through all of the papers, he finally picked up Naruto's paper and snorted "Hmp, someone actually passed with an empty paper…" He looked at the name written on the paper. "Uzumaki… Naruto huh" he mumbled.

At the Forest of Death…

As soon as they reached the next exam site, they were left to anticipate for their next task as the examiners prepare.

Sakura sat on a large boulder as her teammates leaned against it. "I wonder what kind of test is this" the kunoichi sounded like she was having fun.

"I hope we get to fight" said Naruto, enthusiastically as he pushed off the boulder and thrusted a fist to the air. "Oh you definitely will" Naruto's eyes widened as a kunai shot past his face. Naruto turned around as Sasuke and Sakura looked up to see Anko standing there with sarcastic yet somewhat sadistic smile on her face.

"W-What are you trying to do?!" said Naruto as Anko walked over to pull the kunai off the ground, licking Naruto's blood off the side "You are Team Kakashi right?" said Anko "So what if we are" said Naruto as he wiped the blood from the small cut on his face. "How's Kakashi doing?" ask Anko, closing her eyes in a smile though it still didn't quite look sincere.

"He's doing great" Sakura said with a smile. Sasuke snorted "Too great"

"I heard that you are the only ones who passed his test" said Anko. "Test?" Sakura asked as she looked down at her teammates.

"Oh yea, before you came, Kakashi-sensei gave us a test, we had to steal these bells from him" said Naruto. Sasuke's mood immediately fell. This did not go unnoticed by his blond teammate. Naruto burst out in fits of laughter "This bastard over here got himself buried to the neck by Kakashi-sensei" said Naruto. Sasuke glared at him and turned his head away in a huff "At least I'm not the one that got caught in a deer trap, loser deer"

"Ah! You saw nothing!" Naruto shouted.

But before Naruto could go on, Anko looked over at the tent where her colleague was waving a hand at her "It's time to start, try not to die, you three" she gave them another empty smile before jumping off.

A few moments later they heard a voice near the gate of the forest and all the genin gather around to listen.

"Okay, listen up, there are 12 groups of you, and 6 of you will be getting the earth scroll and the other 6 will get the heaven scroll and you will need both to be able to pass, so you need to fight for it, if you open the scroll, you'll fail, your purpose is to attain the opposite scroll and head towards the center of the forest, there will be an arena there, enter it and wait there, the time limit is 5 days, if you can't bring both scrolls to the arena in 5 days, you fail, do I make myself clear?" said Anko.

The genins nodded.

"Very well, we will call you up to the stall over there to sign some papers, claiming that we will not be responsible for your death" She could visibly see some of the genins tense up, nervously. Anko smirked "This forest isn't called the forest of death without a reason you know if you can't handle it then you may leave but once you're in there, there is no turning back." said Anko she paused and rubbed the back of her head "Oh and one more thing, Don't die" she said firmly.

"Hearing that excites me" said Naruto.

"Don't waste your energy in the first few days" said Sasuke.

"I know that!"

One by one the genin teams went up to the stall and left for their assigned gate. Then finally it was Team Kakashi's turn.

"Finally it's our turn!" Naruto said as he pushed off the wall and proceeded to the stall with his team.

The two boys followed her into the stall, they closed it with curtains so that the other genins won't know which scroll they got, they signed some papers and the examiner gave them the heaven scroll, They silently decided to let Sasuke kept hold of the scroll.

Squadron 7 was assigned to gate 6.

Anko looked at her watch, when it struck 5, the gates were opened and the genins dashed inside. Team Kakashi wandered around for awhile to familiar themselves with the forest however they found it rather hard, the trees were at least over a hundred years old, and couldn't really see sunlight the trees were blocking out most of it. Not long after they ran in from the gate, an eerie scream echoed through the forest and made team Kakashi stop in a complete standstill. "T-That was a scream wasn't it?" said Naruto.

"It hasn't even been ten minutes yet" said Sasuke with a frown then he looked towards Sakura, her emerald eyes had no trace of fear, or any other kind of emotion in fact. Something in her eyes sent a chill up Sasuke's spine and soon he realized it to be fear. He shook off that feeling and continued on, leading the team through the forest.

Soon they came across a lake and Naruto announced that he had to go relieve himself

"I gotta go pee" Naruto stated bluntly as he rubbed the back of his head meekly. Sasuke ran his palm over his face as he sighed "Make it quick, we can't risk staying at one spot for too long" he said. "Geez it's just a pee" said Naruto as he ran off to the trees.

Sakura walked towards the middle of the lake were a few speckles of sunlight were reflecting off the water. Sasuke watched as she crouched underneath the sunlight as she drew circles in the water with a carefree smile on her face. A small smile appeared on his lips without him knowing till he heard the rustling of leaves as Naruto returned.

"Ahh… much better" said Naruto.

Sasuke's eyes suddenly narrowed and then he disappeared before appeared next to Naruto and landing a sharp kick to the side of Naruto's head, sending him tumbling to the root of the tree. Sakura's head looked up and she stood. 'That doesn't feel like Naruto's chakra' Sakura thought.

"What did you do with Naruto" Sasuke snapped, armed and very dangerous. "What are you doing all of the sudden, Sasuke" Naruto picked himself up, wiping the side of his mouth. "Spill it, where is the real Naruto" Sasuke glared at him. "I don't know what are you talking about!" Naruto shouted.

Sasuke scowled then 'Naruto' flying once again, following up with a punch in midair that send him back to the ground.

"Naruto is right handed, so he wears his pouch on his right leg, but you're wearing it on your left. Your transformation is even worst than Naruto's. You impostor" said Sasuke. A sudden wry smile appeared on Naruto's face as he chuckled darkly, arms swaying as he got up. "I guess you got me, how unlucky" he said.

"I am going to ask you again, what did you do to the real Naruto" Sasuke snapped. Naruto exploded in a dust of smoke and the impostor stood in his real form. "Which one of you have the scroll, You?" the impostor looked at Sasuke before glancing at Sakura who was still standing on the lake "Or that girl over there" he said, completely ignoring Sasuke's question.

Sasuke held up his kunai. When the enemy got no reply from either of them, he took a shot at Sakura, immediately dashing after her. Sasuke flung a kunai at him to try and stop him but it was easily dodge. 'I'll go after his teammate and force the scroll out of him'

_That was his first mistake._

Sakura didn't flinch, in fact she didn't move at all. "What's the matter little girl? Too scared to move?" the ame-nin said as he thrusted a hand at her, attempting to grab her by the neck _'She… disappeared?'_

His pupils rolled down and saw pink before a rib crushing kick was delivered to his gut, sending him flying backwards. The ame nin recovered and pulled his head back, flipping on the water and skidding to a stop on his hands and feet. It wasn't long before another attack was shot at him. He looked up and saw Sasuke overhead "Katon, Housenka no jutsu!" Sasuke called, fireballs continuously rained down on him. One by one he was able to dodge the fireballs then shot up to cross kunais with Sasuke. As they shot past one another, the ame-nin decided to flee. Sasuke gave chase.

As he pursuit the ame-nin through the trees, he caught sight of Naruto, trying to wriggle free from the ropes. "OOOOIII! SASUKE!" He shouted. Sasuke clicked his tongue and stopped himself on a branch with an hand and his feet on the branch then flinging a kunai at Naruto "You loser" he cursed.

Naruto paused as the kunai stabbed into the ground just next to his ropes. He gave the ropes a little push and then it snapped free. "Yes!"

"I see a weak spot! Lucky!" the ame-nin said as he turned and flung a few kunais at Sasuke. Sasuke's eyes widened before swinging down to shield himself under the branch before he heard a clang of metal. "Sasuke, get down! It's an explosive tag!" he heard Sakura call out to him. He looked to see a kunai that had been knocked out of the way, but it was still within his range of damage. Immediately Sasuke pushed off the branch, being slightly pushed by the force of the blast.

Swiftly, he landed on his feet and knee. His eyes widened when he felt the tip of a kunai pressed onto his back. "If you make a move, I'll kill you. Had over the scroll" he heard the ame-nin's voice say. Sasuke merely smirked.

A kunai was thrown at his back. Clicking his tongue, the ame-nin decided to leave Sasuke and dodge it. The kunai landed next to his feet as Naruto landed behind him. Immediately as the ame-nin ran, Sakura threw a kunai at him, catching his side.

And then before he knew it. Sasuke at bashed into him with a kunai sunk deep into his shoulder. Sasuke had instinctively activated his sharingan. The ame-nin looked shocked before he pulled away "How unlucky, it was unfavorable for me to come alone afterall" he said as he fled. Sasuke panted as his sharingan faded. "He decided to run, huh"

"Bastard… I'm going to seriously mess up his face the next time I see him" Naruto shouted. Sakura and Sasuke landed next to Naruto. "When we're separated we need a way to confirm our identities" said Sasuke. "Then how about a password?" asked Sakura. "That'll do"

They sat down in a circle but before Sasuke could start, Sakura cut him off when she reached out to him. "What are you trying to do, Sakura" he said, looking weirded out. "Just hold still for a moment, Sasuke" Sakura said.

"What? No-" before Sasuke knew it, he was a handkerchief pressed to his face. Naruto pointed and laughed at Sasuke "Teme has to get his face wiped by Sakura-chan"

When Sakura lowered the handkerchief, Sasuke was partially red. "Don't do things so suddenly like that" Sasuke mumbled. "AHAHAHA! Teme is embarrassed! He's blushing!" Naruto laughed and then he paused _'Sasuke… is blushing…?'_

"Well you had blood on your face, if you leave it on. It's going to become harder to remove" said Sakura, not realizing what she's really done. Sasuke glared at Naruto then cleared his throat "Anyway, I've got an idea for the password" he said. "The ninja song 'Ninki' will be the question. I'll only say it once so listen well"

_It is a good chance when a large amount of enemies are making a scene. There are no hideouts even in a quiet place. It is important for a shinobi to know the right time. The time when the enemy is tired and has his guard down. _

Sakura nodded then looked at Naruto "Did you get that? Naruto?" she asked. Naruto just stared at the ground with a frown on my face "C-Could you repeat that?" he asked. "You didn't get it?" Sakura asked. "Of course I got it! I-I just wanted to make sure, that's all" he said. "Right, I'll hold on to the scroll" said Sasuke as he stood up.

"Wait a minute, Sasuk-" Naruto paused and winced "Ow…." A cut appeared on his cheek as blood dripped down in a line. Instantly, everyone was at alert. "What… was that?" asked Naruto. Sakura scowled "It's coming"

And then they were hit with a strong blast of wind.

"Another enemy?" Sasuke said as he struggled to stay on his feet, trying to cover the wind with his hands but not completely blocking his view from the opponent.

They decided to separate to get away from the wind, Sasuke hid under a bush as he waited for the enemy to show up when he felt a presence, he leapt out of the bush, ready to throw his kunai. Just barely managing to stop himself when he saw Sakura. "Sasuke, it's me"

"Sakura?"

Sakura sighed in relief "You're really Sasuke" she smiled. Sasuke frowned "The ninja song 'Ninki'" he said. "E-Eh? Ah right"

Sakura recited the password without a word out of place, only then did Sasuke lower his weapon. "Hey guys!" they heard Naruto's voice call out to them. Sasuke's weapon was up again. Sakura's body instinctively tensed up, this didn't go unnoticed by Sasuke. "Naruto, The ninja song 'Ninki'" he demanded.

Naruto paused "I get it I get it" he said. And when recited the code perfectly. Sasuke threw the kunai at him. Naruto threw himself to the side. "What's the big deal, Sasuke! I recited the code perfectly, didn't I?" Naruto shouted. "It's because you recited it perfectly, that loser would probably go 'Sorry, I forgot'" said Sasuke.

Once again, the fake Naruto transformed back to his real self, and in this case. Her self. "What did you do with Naruto" said Sasuke. "You're not a genin, who are you" Sakura snapped. This was the first time, Sasuke heard Sakura so intimidated. He gave her a worried glance with his eyes.

The woman chuckled "Wonderful, wonderful. You can sense chakra now, can you? Haruno child"

Sakura clenched on her kunai, ready for anything. "Who are you?" Sasuke demanded. "Do you really want to know?" the woman chuckled again. "I'm not going to ask again" Sasuke snapped. "Impatient little brat, aren't you" the woman said as she adjusted her hat and lowered her face, however her eyes glanced up and Sakura and Sasuke were hit with a blinding black fear.

It was like they saw _hell _in her eyes. Everything became suffocating and dark, they could see their own deaths as well as many others, the haunting and rotting bodies of those that passed before them. They found themselves on the ground, panting and shaking.

Sasuke was on one knee, struggling to get back on his feet. He glanced at Sakura to see how she was doing. Sakura was holding her head, crying "I'm sorry… I'm sorry… I'm sorry!" She screamed as she covered her ears.

The woman chuckled "What a sight" she licked her lips. "S-Sakura…" Sasuke gritted his teeth "What did you do to her?" he snapped. The woman looked from Sakura to Sasuke "I didn't do anything, it's what _she _did. I'm just showing it to her" another chuckle "You didn't think she was just a stray Iwa-nin. Did you?" she said.

Sasuke panted "What do you mean by that" he said. "She's murdered countless numbers of people in cold blood. She's nothing but a weapon of assassination. And now the souls that she have severed from this earth are reflecting back to her"

'_So that's why her eyes were-'_

Sakura kept on apologizing as her head bowed lower and lower and her voice became faded. Sasuke needed to do something soon, but his body was paralyzed with fear. That's when he noticed the kunai that was still gripped tightly in his hands.

The woman began approaching them, step by step with two kunais in her hand. _'Does she intend to kill us both…?' _

"How pathetic" the woman spat.

Sasuke mentally cursed himself as he saw the woman drew back her hand, ready to throw her kunai. _'Move… move… MOVE!' _

He smashed his hand down onto his legs with the kunai's tip stabbing into his thigh just before the woman threw the kunai and disappeared off into the forest with Sakura.

The woman stared at the blood of pool from where Sasuke stood and licked her lips. "Choosing pain over fear, huh. Interesting kid" Orochimaru licked his lips.

Sasuke managed to get far enough from Orochimaru before his strength faded, he set Sakura down on the branch before he collapsed in pants in front of her. Eyes still wild with adrenaline as his chest continued to heave. He could heard Sakura still mumbling as her tears stopped falling and her eyes looked tired. The kunoichi still had her ears covered as she began to sway slightly. Sasuke reached out to her and wrapped his fingers around her wrist and gently removed them from her ears.

Sakura looked up slowly, but before she could meet Sasuke's eyes. She had her head pressed onto his chest, she turned her head and listened to his racing heartbeats. "It's okay now" he muttered softly to her. Sakura's breathing began to calm down as they stayed in that position for some time.

Sakura blinked a few times as she wriggled out of Sasuke's hold to see the kunai stabbed into his leg. "S-Sasuke, your leg" she gasped. "It's not that serious" said Sasuke but before Sasuke could reach for it, Sakura had already removed it with one swift motion. He hadn't even felt it.

Sakura reached into her pouch and pulled out a bandage and making quick work of Sasuke's leg and effectively stopping the bleeding. "We'll need to get it proper treatment once this is over" she said. "Thanks" Sasuke muttered.

Suddenly they felt a presence, Sakura's eyes widened at the figure standing over at the branch across from them, Sasuke turned back, teeth gritting as he got up once again and standing protectively in front of Sakura.

"Move out of the way, brat. You're not the one I want" the woman said. Sasuke's scowl deepened, eyes glaring directly at the woman. Sasuke lunged at her, shooting across the branch and crossing kunais with the woman. She licked her lips and easily pushed back on him. "You've already lost all of your strength. Just give up" said the woman.

Sasuke stumbled back on a branch, his vision was blurring. However he could make out a blur of pink charging at Orochimaru, Sasuke gritted his teeth when he realized that he could barely see, much less move. Sakura too had lost pretty much all her strength but she was holding out better than Sasuke at the moment. She flung a few kunais back at the woman when she was pushed back by Orochimaru's kunai. The explosive tags that were attached to them went off, successfully catching Orochimaru in it.

But to Sakura's surprise, Orochimaru's head extended and shot out of the smoke, coming after her. Sakura panicked and quickly tried to jump back in retreat only to find her back slammed against a tree. She winced at the hard contact but before she had time to recover Orochimaru had her fingers firmly wrapped around her shoulders and forbidding any movement.

She felt his fangs brush across her skin. Every nerve in her body was in chaos, she shut her eyes and waited for the pain.

Then she felt her opponent come to a stop and retreat to deflect a bunch of incoming kunais. Orochimaru scowled at Sasuke who stood panting and his eyes glaring with the sharingan. "Get away from her" he snarled.

And from the moment, Orochimaru's eyes glowed with even more lust than before. "Sharingan…" she licked her lips and it seemed like he had no interest in Sakura anymore. Orochimaru leapt after Sasuke, the latter stood his ground and held up his kunai before a bomb was thrown in front of Orochimaru and once again engulfing him in the blast.

Sasuke looked to the side, up in a higher branch stood a very bold looking Naruto. "Sorry Sasuke, I forgot the code" he said with a grin on his face. "Naruto!" Sakura called out to him, relief in her voice. Sasuke smirked and sighed "You're late, loser" he said.

And then his attention was immediately back to the opponent. Before Orochimaru could make a comeback, he decided to strike. "Katon, Goukakyuu no jutsu"

A fireball replaced the lingering cloud of smoke and a figure shot out of it and landing right next to Sasuke. The latter's eyes widened, immediately Sasuke turned his body to face Orochimaru only to have his blood run cold. Orochimaru's face was half torn and revealing his real face.

Orochimaru reached out to Sasuke only to have Naruto lunge at him and effectively chase him off. "Get lost" he snarled. "Tch, kyuubi brat" Orochimaru spat, Naruto shot at him again but he was immediately caught. Naruto kicked and struggled as Orochimaru's fingertips lit up with chakra before he plunged them into Naruto's stomach "Fuen Jutsu!"

Naruto lost consciousness then Orochimaru threw him off to the side. "Naruto!" Sakura screamed, knowing that she wouldn't be able to reach him on time, she threw a kunai at him it caught on to his clothes and pinned him to the tree and effectively stopping him from falling.

Her attention was turned back to Sasuke but it was already too late when Sasuke let out a painful shriek and Orochimaru disappeared. Sakura arrived just in time to catch Sasuke before he fell. Sasuke's breathing became heavy and his face held a pained look. Sakura frantically tried to look for something wrong with him and then noticed an angry bite mark at the side of his neck and a mark that resembled the tomoe of his sharingan. Sakura decided not to think so much about it for now.

She needed to get the away from the open, if someone were to attack them here, they wouldn't stand a chance. She hauled her two teammates through the forest, finally finding a hollow root of a tree.

First she proceeded to perform first aid to them. She unzipped Naruto's jacket to keep his body temperature stable then checked Sasuke's body temperature 'Seems like he has a slight fever'

Sakura left the hiding spot to go look for the lake so that she could wet the towels. She came back and realized that there was a presence lingering around the area where she hid Naruto and Sasuke. Her eyes widened as she tried to hide herself while trying to think of a plan. 'Please don't find them…' she prayed then noticed that the enemy was Lee.

She tried not to let her hopes go up just because the enemy was someone she knew. Although they know each other, as long as they are both participants in the test, they will have to see everyone as the enemy.

'What should I do?'

Her heart stopped when Lee looked like he had discovered Naruto and Sasuke as he began walking to the hollow root. She leapt down from the branch and landed swiftly in front of Lee. Opening her arms and her eyes firm, protecting Naruto and Sasuke.

"S-Sakura-san?" said Lee. Sakura eyes pleaded with Lee "Please…. Just go. If it's our scroll you want then I'll give it to you" said Sakura. Lee looked surprised "Were Sasuke and Naruto taken out?" asked Lee. Sakura glanced back at her unconscious teammate then looked down "They're just unconscious, but they are really going to die if I don't give them medical attention" said Sakura.

Lee sniffed, suddenly tears in her eyes "Sakura-san! I respect your loyalty to your teammates! It is truly a sight of youth!" he sobbed into his arm. Sakura smiled at him "I know you'll do the same to your teammates as well, Lee-san" she said.

Lee looked up from his sobbing "Just now, you just called me by my name. Didn't you?" he said. "Yes I did, Oh I'm sorry if you are offended by it" said Sakura. Lee grabbed her hand "NOT AT ALL! SAKURA-SAN I WILL HELP YOU PROTECT YOUR TEAMMATES!" he said.

Sakura looked surprised "But… we're supposed to be opponents" said Sakura. "I have sworn to protect you, I will not break that promise" said Lee, then he gave her a thumbs up and a pearly white grin. 'Gai-sensei… You must be proud of me, are you not?'

Relief rushed over Sakura but then she paused "But aren't you after the scroll?" asked Sakura, Lee rubbed the back of his head "Actually my team has already gotten both scrolls, I wandered off from my team to look for decent opponents to spar with me" he said.

"Is that so? Then good luck with the next exam" said Sakura, normally this would be the part where she becomes jealous and tries to persuade Lee to give up his scroll for her but Sakura show no ill intentions what so ever. "I'm very grateful that you have decided to help me" said Sakura, her head bowing down as she thanked him.

Lee waved his hands in front of him "There's no need for that, Sakura-san. We're already friends aren't me" he said. Sakura looked up and smiled "Thank you"

After that, Lee patrolled around the area, on the lookout for any approaching enemies as Sakura tried her best to lower Sasuke's fever and stabilize Naruto's body temperature.

She was about to go wash the handkerchiefs before she felt a chakra signature approaching and she quickly ducked back down into the tree. Scowling as she watched the outside silently, praying that they won't be found.

She bit back a gasp when they landed right in front of the entrance, Sakura armed herself but never had the chance to attack as a familiar voice sounded. "Konoha senpuu!"

She tried to make out the battle between them just by listening to the sounds but soon realized that everyone had stopped moving. Sakura snuck a peek before a hand reached into the tree and dragged her out by the hair then thrown to the ground, tumbling till her back bumped into Lee. She winced as she pushed herself up to sit then her eyes widened when they fell on Lee's beaten up body, his eyes were hazel as he looked up at her.

"S-Sakura-san… You shouldn't have come out" he whispered hoarsely. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have let you do this" she said in a wavering voice. She reached out to help him before she was wrenched back by her hair she jerked back and instinctively reached to her hair to try and pull free.

"Mm…. I love your hair. It's so soft and silky" the girl said in a rather sweet voice before her eyes became murderous and she tightened her grip "Makes me want to _cut_ it all off" the girl said through gritted teeth. She gave Sakura's hair another tug and the latter yelped in pain.

The one with the sunglasses called Dosu approached her and entered her range of view. He inspected her features at first then concluded with a nod "Pink hair and green eyes, she's the freak Orochimaru told us to kill" he said.

"Heh, that's no fun. She's practically dead already" said Zaku. "Why not we kill her friends over there in front of her" said Kin. Zaku looked at her, surprised then he smirked "You're a sick girl, Kin. But totally awesome" he said. Sakura's blood ran cold she caught a glimpse of Zaku walking towards Lee. Her heart began to race and her breathing sped up. Her hands gripped Kin's wrist, crushing it. Kin winced "What's with her strength…?" she muttered.

Dosu looked at her "What's wrong, Kin" he asked. "She-" but she was cut off when Sakura flung her overhead, causing her to crash into Zaku. Dosu attacked only to be stabbed in the leg by Sakura then she landed a sharp upward kick to his jaw, sending him flying backwards. Her neck was suddenly clipped between Zaku's bicep and forearm and then pulled back.

She pulled her head forward then send it back, ramming the back of her head into Zaku's face, causing him to loosen up, she flipped back and threw Zaku over, twisting his arm in an awkward position and locking him into place. She looked up to see Kin lung at her with a kunai, she released Zaku and jumped back.

"You little bitch, how _dare_ you" Kin snapped. Sakura formed seals "Katon, Karyuu Endan! (Fire Style, Fire Dragon Flame Bullet)"

Kin gasped and just barely managed to escape being scorched. Sakura cut her technique short to dodge a blast of wind that Zaku blasted from his hands. The wind brushed past her hair and ear, her left eye's vision blurred, causing a misstep and that was all they needed to make their comeback. She was sent flying back, her back was slammed against the tree before falling on all fours. Quickly dodging Kin's kunais.

Her eyes trailed to Dosu as the guy made his way towards her teammates. Acting quickly, she immediately lunged herself at Dosu, kicking him out of the way before she hit with Zaku's wind. She stood her ground by pumping chakra to her feet. Naruto and Sasuke would've been affected if she had jumped away.

Her eyes were ringing as she swayed, vision blurring. At that moment she knew that she was going to die. In the darkness that was beginning to surround her, there was a presence. She could feel it. "Sa-" she cut herself off when she felt a hand on her eyes and an arm around her waist. Gently pulling her back. She allowed herself to rest her legs and sit on the ground. "You can rest now, Sakura" a smooth, deep voice told her "Keep your eyes closed"

The pair of warm hands slid away from her skin and she could feel footsteps on the dirt, approaching the enemy. With her eyes closed she waited patiently, she couldn't hear much as Zaku's last attack had messed up her cochlea.

She felt so calm, she didn't even know why. She shouldn't as she had just allowed Sasuke to go up against 3 highly skilled opponents on his own and here she is, just sitting on the ground with her eyes closed. There was something in Sasuke's voice when he told her to keep her eyes closed that she couldn't disobey.

However curiosity had gotten the best of her and she decided that a little peek won't hurt. It would be safer if she checked on how he was doing. Her eyes slowly fluttered open, just in time to witness Sasuke's monstrous state as he held Zaku by his arms as he had a leg pressed against the latter's back. Sasuke had black marks covering his entire body, his sharingan activated as he glared down at the panicking Zaku. Her eyes widened. _Who is he?_

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, P-Please spare m-me" Zaku begged. Sakura looked around to see Kin and Dosu on the floor, all beaten up and unmoving then looked back to Sasuke. "Sas-" Sakura was cut off by Zaku's ear piercing scream in pain, accompanied by the cracking of bones being severed from their ligaments.

Sakura gasped, but not at the sudden outburst of sound but by Sasuke's bloodthirsty expression that held no remorse or emotion for his actions that so vaguely reminded her of herself. "Sasuke!" Sakura screamed, it seemed to have gotten through to him as emotion returned to his eyes and he dropped Zaku, his chest heaving as he took a step back. "No more…" Sakura told him as she began to take wobbly steps towards him.

Zaku's unconscious body had suddenly disappeared and two of them looked to their side and found Dosu, carrying two bodies with him. "P-Please… Take this scroll in exchange for out escape" he said nervously as he left the said scroll on the ground and jumped off. Sakura turned her attention back to Sasuke and the latter suddenly collapsed to the ground, groaning and yelling in pain as he clutched the side of his neck.

Sakura didn't know what to do as she watched her teammate in pain. She pulled him to her as she engulfed herself in chakra, trying to see if she could insert her chakra into him and try to sooth his pain. Sasuke laid on her chest, his pain fading along with his consciousness. His eyes blinked sleepily as his world went dark. _Her heartbeats…_

Naruto was the first to wake up and find himself sleeping in the hollows of a tree, panicking about how long he was asleep, he shouted

"AHH!"

"Naruto? What's wrong?"

Naruto's ears perked up at the soft spoken and worried voice his teammate. "Sakura-chan?" he said excitedly getting up on his feet only to have smash his head on the top. Followed by a loud thud came a Naruto, crawling painfully out from the tree hollow.

As soon as he laid eyes on Sakura, he was crestfallen to see Sasuke lying on Sakura's lap. "What is that bastard doing?! T-That's sexual harassment!" He shouted with his right eye twitching. "What are you shouting at, dope" Sasuke winced open an eye and look up at Naruto, grouchily. "I have all the rights to shout right now! You're a pervert! I can't even bare to look at you" Naruto said in a huff.

"What are you talking abo-" Sasuke paused when he realized that his 'pillow' was warm. He scrambled to his feet, the sudden rush of adrenaline made him lightheaded and he stumbled a little before he managed to catch himself.

Sasuke realized that he had probably been lying on Sakura's lap for the whole time he was unconscious. "H-How long has it been since we were unconscious" Sasuke demanded, hoping that Sakura wouldn't mention anything about him lying on her lap or Naruto is going to pester him for the rest of his life.

Sakura yawned and blinked away the tears in her sleepy eyes "Not too long, only about a day or so" she said. Naruto threw a hand into his hair, clenching it "Then that means we've only got 2 days left to get to the arena, and we haven't even gotten the other scroll yet!" Naruto panicked. "Ah, about that-" Sakura pulled out two scrolls from her pack and held it up with a smile.

"Sasuke had already taken care of that" said Sakura. "The teme did? When!? I missed something again, didn't I!" Naruto shouted again. "You would've just gotten in the way" said Sasuke. "I so would not!"

Sasuke noticed Sakura rubbing her eyes, and then under her eyes were a pair of very dark circles. "Sakura, did you stay up this whole time?" Sasuke asked, his brow furrowing and his mouth in a frown. Sakura yawned again and nodded "Sorta" she drawled "I had to make sure we weren't jumped, Tenten-san was so kind to tell me the route to the arena too" Sakura blinked tiredly.

"Tenten? You mean that girl in Team Gai?" asked Sasuke. "Bushy-brow's team? He was here? I wanted to beat the snot out of him!" Naruto shouted. "What were they doing here?" Sasuke's frown deepened. "You didn't see him when you were fighting the-" Sakura cut herself short when she saw the questioned look on Sasuke's face.

_He doesn't remember?_

"Lee-san got knocked unconscious when he was defending us, Tenten-san and Neji-san came to get him a few hours before you guys woke up" said Sakura. "Wait, we were _attacked_?" Naruto asked, alarmed. Sasuke had a very hazy memory of what he had done but decided to keep it seemed to be a very sensitive subject, he didn't have time to worry about that seal now.

He looked up at the sky "It's nearly evening, we should start moving otherwise we are going to fall behind and the other teams are going to try to ambush us" Sasuke said. "Right" Sakura reached into her pack and pulled out a pill and popped it into her mouth before crunching it. "Let's go"

Next Chapter

"Let's get that sealed"

"She's caught!"

"Lee!"

"I've got a big surprised for ya"

"Chidori!"

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**So how was it? I did NOT enjoy rewriting this, my grammar and descriptions in the pre-revised version were so horrible, I couldn't even bare reading it. Hopefully there were at least some improvement-I really hope so. **

**I love your reviews, where were a few constructive criticisms as well! I'm not complaining or anything, I really appreciate you guys pointing out my flaws, it's good experience for me. Keep it up please! And I do apologize for my amateur writing skills, I'm still very young afterall :D YOOOOUTTTTH! **

**For the question on last chapter, I think the best looking female character is Kushina! I'm surprised none of you make a call on her! Quite a few of you said Hinata and Tsunade! Anyway here's the next question. **

**Which character do you hate most in the series?**


	5. Team Kakashi: Pass or Fail

******Hello my lovelies, back with another chapter. Yes I know I'm not very consistent but I'm working on it, Anyways enjoy for now.**

**Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto**

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**Team Kakashi: Pass or Fail?**

They found out that they were the lasts ones to enter the arena so far, as they entered they looked around cautiously for Orochimaru and let their muscles relax when he wasn't present. Allowing themselves to relax a little, they decided to sit around, they still had some time before the exam was over, they glanced around to inspect their opponents. The teams that made it so far were, Kabuto's team, Neji's team, Kiba's team, Ino's team, and Gaara's team and their own.

As soon as Ino laid eyes on Sasuke, she latched herself onto his arm, squealing. "Sasuke-kuuuun! I was waiting for you!" she cooed. Sasuke's face scrunched up in disgust as he tried to be rid of her, but the blond had a really tough grip. "Ah, Ino-chan. You made it" Sakura said. Immediately Ino's attention turned to Sakura. "Sakura~ you seem fine! Was it hard for you?" Ino asked her.

Sakura was immediately sent back to the forest, back to the fight they struggled with Orochimaru how she broke down and Naruto was plunged out of commission, how Sasuke attained the seal on his neck and then lost control. Sakura blinked a few time nervously then faked a smile "It was okay"

Before Ino could reply, a new team entered the arena and once again gaining everyone"s attention. This time, they were faces that were familiar to Sakura and Sasuke. Sakura looked surprised that they still managed to get both scrolls despite Sasuke dislocating both arms of one of their teammates. Sasuke narrowed his eyes slightly at Team Zaku and visibly intimidated them.

"Looks like the test wasn't so soft of some of us" said Ino, gesturing at Zaku's wrapped arms that were clearly limp. "Aha… yeah…" Sakura said sheepishly, not quite knowing what else to say as she knew who was the one that did that to them.

Unconsciously she glanced at Sasuke to see his reaction to Team Zaku. He seemed normal, eyes just slightly distant. "Sasuke, do you know them? They seem to be pretty scared of you" Naruto said. Sasuke turned away from Team Zaku "Yeah, in a way" he said. Sakura's eyes widened. _He remembers._

Their conversation was interrupted when a rather lazy voice drawled throughout the area "Congratulations to all of you here, you may now open your scrolls"

Everyone turned around to look to the man standing in the middle of the arena as the lights turned on, he was probably their next examiner, but for an examiner he looked awfully sickly with dark circles under his eyes and a pale complexion. Sakura took out the scrolls and handed on to Naruto as they both opened it, the words floated from the page. The words from everyone's scrolls joined together and exploded off in a puff of smoke and the word "Congratulations" were written in the air with sparkling letters.

This woke up a few of the genins who seemed exhausted.

"Please line up according to your respective teams" the examiner said. The genins scattered around and eventually ended up with neat lines of three. "As you can probably tell, I am your next examiner- Gekkou Hayate. We are now going to commence the 3rd stage of the exam"

The hollow arena was filled with murmurs and discussion amongst teammates. "You will be matched up randomly and engage in a one on one battle with whoever you end up with, anyone who thinks they can't continue, you are free to leave" Hayate said.

"I will now announce the rules for the third exam, you will be matched up randomly and engage a one on one battle, anyone who thinks they can't continue, please raise their hands and you may leave" said Hayate.

A silver headed boy with the konoha hitai-ate raised his hand and Hayate nodded before he left for the sidelines. Sakura glanced over her shoulder to see if Sasuke was raising his hand, she wondered if she should tell the examiner about Sasuke"s condition. It might become a fatal injury for all they know.

Sakura sent him one more worried glance before making up her mind. Her hand slowly lifted before it froze in midair. "What are you doing, Sakura" Sasuke asked, although it sounded off more like a demand. "I"m going to tell the examiner about your condition, Sasuke. You know you are in no condition to engage battle" she said.

"I'll be fine, Sakura. You just need to worry about yourself" he said rather coldly before lowering Sakura"s hand by the wrist. "But-" Sakura tried to argue. "Do I really frighten you that much?" he asked out of the sudden.

Sakura looked surprised as she was instantly reminded of Sasuke's frightening expression and cold chakra as he ruthlessly dislocated Zaku"s arm. "I'm sorry"

Sakura looked to him, eyes widened as he looked at her with a rather hurt expression. "Ah, I didn't-" she was cut off again "I won't lose myself like that again" Sasuke assured her, this time his eyes looked firm. Sakura looked down in reconsideration then nodded "Alright but Kakashi-sensei has to know about this" she bargained. "Deal"

"Ah, are you guys forming a plan without me?!" Naruto whispered loudly.

"Anyone else?" said Hayate.

Everyone kept silent.

"Very well, the matchup will now begin" Hayate said, turned around to face the screen. The first pair appeared on screen.

"Hell yeah! I"m lucky today!" the loud voice of Inuzuka Kiba shouted. "No way, I'm the lucky one" Naruto retorted. "Akamaru and I are going to beat you without even breaking a sweat!" said Kiba. "Akamaru?" Naruto asked as he tilted his head, puzzled.

"Yeah, my ninja hou-" but he stopped his sentence when he realized that he couldn't seem to find his ninja pup anywhere.

He sniffed around for his partner's scent and when he finally spotted him, he was busy playing with a bright haired kunoichi he had never seen in his life. He never knew Akamaru could play like that with anyone but him.

As she was busy scratching the back of the puppy's ear, she noticed that someone was staring intently at her. Turning her head then looking up to meet Kiba's eyes, she blinked a few times before smiling at him. "Is this your ninja hound?" she asked him as she lifted the puppy off the ground.

Kiba forced a nod, eyes still holding on to Sakura's till she lifted the puppy to his face. Akamaru licked his nose and barked, successfully snapping him back to reality. He took Akamaru back from Sakura and placed him on his head.

Sakura chuckled.

Kiba panicked "W-What's so funny" he said, nervously. Sakura grinned sheepishly "I'm sorry, it's just that that's a pretty peculiar place to put a puppy" she said. "I-Is that so?" Kiba rubbed the back of his head and laughed meekly. "I'm Haruno Sakura" Sakura added. "Inuzuka Kiba" Kiba said. Sakura glanced at the screen "Oh, you're up against Naruto" Sakura said.

"Naruto…? Are you familiar with that guy?" Kiba asked. "He's my teammate after all" Sakura stated bluntly. Kiba looked surprised. They heard a clap "Can everyone except the chosen two leave the field and go up to the spectator's stand" Hayate said.

Sakura offered Kiba another smile before jogging off to follow Sasuke to the stands but not before wishing Naruto good luck and giving him a high-5. Kiba watched as she walked up the metal stairs to the stands, Akamaru barked "I know, boy. I know" he said absent mindedly. _He might have harbored a little crush on his opponent's teammate._

Naruto's voice penetrated his thoughts like a spear "Oi Kiba! Quit day dreaming so we can start!" Kiba twitched then snapped back "You'll be sorry you even said that! You're going down!"

The first part of the match was completely one sided against Naruto. But it turned out that Naruto had managed to outsmart Kiba to punching the Akamaru and that gave Naruto an opening to knock Kiba out and winning the first match, however he didn't get out unpaid either, he had a few scratches here and there and a beaten up body.

The next pair was up-

Uchiha Sasuke

vs

Akado Yoroi

Sasuke didn't waste a second to jump down to the arena and was immediately greeted by his opponent; a masked man wearing sunglasses that made it impossible to make out his features. Naruto jogged up the stairs energetically to her despite having just taken a beating from Kiba. "Sa~kura-chan! Did I look cool out there?" he said as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. Sakura smiled and nodded "Of course"

And then her attention returned to Sasuke, she began to overthink once again about his condition, what would happen if he loses control during the match. Will he be disqualified? His body might not be able to hold that much power and break down.

_I won't lose control like that again. _

Sakura sucked in, this was no time to be doubting her teammates; suddenly appearing out of nowhere in a puff of smoke was Kakashi. "Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto said, sounding surprised. Sakura noticed that some of the other jounin commanders of the other teams have appeared to spectate the duels as well. "Yo, How's the match" he asked. "Naruto's through, now its Sasuke's turn now" said Sakura. Kakashi raised his eyebrows, looking over at Naruto who held up a peace sign as he grinned cheekily at him. "Great job, Naruto" Kakashi ruffled Naruto's spiky blonde hair.

"Kakashi-sensei…" Sakura muttered softly nonetheless still gaining the jounin's attention "What is it, Sakura?" he asked. "There's something I need to tell you, about Sasuke" she said. Kakashi looked at Naruto, but the blonde just shrugged at him, indicating that he too didn't know.

Sakura explained about what happened in the forest of death and about the strange seal on Sasuke's neck. A shiver went up Naruto's spine "So that creepy bastard did try to do something to you!" Naruto said rather loudly. Kakashi knocked him on the head "You're being too loud, Naruto."

Naruto sucked in his tears and rubbed his sore head "Cut me some slack, Kakashi-sensei. I just fought my round" he whined. Kakashi had a serious look on his face and he thought. It wasn't long before they heard and cry of pain from the arena. Heads snapping towards the match, they saw Sasuke on one knee as he gripped the side of his neck.

"Sasuke…!" Sakura gasped, clutching the railing.

"This is bad, Sasuke's caught with a big disadvantage in this battle" Kakashi's eyes narrowed. "C'mon teme, get up!" Naruto shouted. Sasuke struggled to get back on his feet, but the more he pushed himself the more the black marks began to cover his body- he was losing himself.

Ino gasped along with a few others as they wondered what was happening in that Uchiha's body, she covered her mouth with her hand as they witnessed his change. "What's wrong with him?"

The dark aura of chakra began to shroud around him as the bloodthirsty look lit his eyes, but something caught his attention from the corner of his eyes.

Sakura stood there, looking more or less frightened at him or at his situation either way she was going to worry. He felt his willpower reignite as he fought with himself to push back the marks, finally managing to regain complete control over his body, he was already panting his lungs out as well as swaying on his feet.

He was suddenly tackled to the ground by Yoroi as the latter pinned him down. Sasuke immediately struggled but found that he could not muster any energy, or chakra in fact.

"His chakra is waning" Sakura spoke in a distant voice, eyes never leaving the battle as she unconsciously clutched the railings till her knuckles turned white. Kakashi looked at Sakura "So it's true that she can sense chakra" he thought then turned back to his student"s battle.

Sasuke glared at Yoroi as he clenched his teeth, freeing one of his legs, he managed to land a kick on Yoroi"s stomach, sending his opponent flying backwards. Sasuke stood back up with a different confidence as he activated his sharingan and he raced towards Yoroi, who has yet to recover; landing a sharp upper kick to his chin, Sasuke sent Yoroi into the air then jumped after him and lingering just under him. Sasuke smirked as he placed his hand on his opponent's back and then using him to flip himself, swinging a kick to his right that was effectively blocked by Yoroi "Hah, how naïve" he said.

Kakashi snorted "You're the naïve one"

Sasuke spun in 360 degrees in the air to Yoroi's left and then slamming his arm into the latter's chest- Plunging him back to earth. As Yoroi shot down, Sasuke flipped again "I'm not done yet"

Timing it perfectly with Yoroi's landing, Sasuke crushed his between his leg and the ground, doubling the damage. "Shishi Rendan!"

Lee's eyes widened _"That's my Kage Buyo…! He must've picked it up when I used it on him before the exams"_

Yoroi coughed and gasped for air before he lay limped on the tiled floors. Sasuke's breathing slowed as he looked down on Yoroi's beaten figure as they carried him off in a stretcher. "Hmph" with a huff her shoved his hands back into his pockets and proceeded up the stairs to meet up with his team.

The first thing that he saw was the big smile on Sakura's face, he responded with a victorious smirk before he received a hard slap on the back by Naruto in which he responded by hissing and wincing

"Let's get that mark sealed" he said to Sasuke. The latter nodded was trailed being Kakashi but not before catching a glimpse of the next match up.

Yamanaka Ino

Vs

Haruno Sakura

"It looks Iike I'm up next"

"Good luck" she heard Sasuke say as he passed her. "Okay" she smiled then gave him one more glance before jumping down the arena then waited to be joined by her opponent. "Good luck! Sakura-chan!" Naruto's voice rang in the arena. Sakura looked up and received a big thumb up from her blonde teammate.

Feeling a new warmth in her chest, she walked to the middle of the arena and stood face to face with Ino. "I've wanted to have a spar with you, since Sasuke-kun seems to pay special attention to you… Sakura-_chan_" Ino ended the sentence rather mockingly. Sakura tilted her head in question "I believe that's just a misunderstanding" she said. Ino twitched "I don't really want to hurt you, Sakura" she said.

"I feel the same"

"Begin" said Hayate.

The first to draw their kunai strikes first, but Sakura had never developed the habit of using kunai for anything other than to defend. Ino flung a kunai at Sakura which she carefully avoids with a tilt of her head. When she turned back to Ino, the blond swung a punch at her. Sakura caught her by her wrist and directly the punch away before landing a hard blow to her gut that sent her tumbling backwards.

Ino flipped backwards and skid to a stop with her legs widened and her hands on the ground, poised like and animal she threw herself back into combat with Sakura. The pink headed kunoichi avoided another punch as she carefully ducked under it and then lands another kick to Ino's back.

Ino jerked forward before violently swinging back, in hopes that she could catch Sakura, but no matter how fast she recovered from her blows, she still couldn't touch her. The more they fought the more Ino's moves became more hasty. She swung a series of kicks simultaneously at Sakura but in between her kicks, she could no longer see the pink haired kunoichi.

By the time she had noticed the presence behind her, she was already pummeling uncontrollably to the ground before her body skid to a stop in a fallen state. Her fingers clenched and her hair in her face, she gritted her teeth and thought with frustration.

"_I can't win…"_

"Ino doesn't seem to be doing so well" Chouji said as he looked at Ino's fallen figure worriedly. "That new girl doesn't move like a normal shinobi" Shikamaru muttered, eyes narrowing at Sakura. _"Who is she?"_

Ino pushed herself to sit up, head still hung low and her hair obstructing her eyes; Her shoulder began to tremble. Worried, Sakura approached Ino with a kunai for defense "Ino-chan? Are you okay?"

Murmurs aroused within the arena

"What is she doing?"

"Is she sympathizing with her opponent?"

In an instant, Ino lifted a kunai and sliced off her ponytail then threw it at Sakura who took a step back and covered her face with her arm as the blonde strands of hair felt about her. She lowered her hand and looked at Ino with a weird look, wondering what the blonde's plan was, going to the extent of cutting off her hair just so she could throw it at her.

"_Does she hate me that much?"_

Sakura's eyes widened by a fraction when she realized that something was wrong "_I can't move my body…!"_ Ino smirked then looked up at Sakura. "You finally stopped moving" Ino said as she rose up to her feet. Sakura struggled then realized why she couldn't move "What happened?" Naruto asked in question. "It seems like she used her hair as a medium to transfer her chakra and hold Sakura down" a familiar voice answered him.

Naruto"s head snapped around "Kakashi-sensei! Sasuke!" he said in surprise, not expecting them to return so quickly. "How's she doing" Sasuke asked. Naruto turned back to the battle "It doesn't seem like she's moving" Naruto said.

"Ino's got her caught" Kakashi said. Naruto looked nervous for Sakura as Ino began to approach her restrained body. "This is Ino's win, isn't it" Chouji looked over to his best friend for guidance. Shikamaru looked like he was thinking hard "I don't think we should underestimate the new girl, there's something weird about her" said Shikamaru. Chouji slumped back down onto the rail as he continued to dangle by it.

Ino held up a seal in front of Sakura, the latter kunoichi tried to figure out what kind of technique was going to be used on her. "Mind Transfer Technique"

In an instant an overwhelming feeling consumed her, she felt a presence overpower her own and her world began to lose color and slowly began to fade away. Soon she could no longer feel the presence of an existence. It was like she was trapped in a dark place, caged and immobile.

After a pregnant moment, Ino's body fell limp onto the ground and Sakura's body straightened as she dropped the kunai in her hands.

"Mind Transfer Success!" Sakura/Ino said all of the sudden. "She's caught" said Chouji. Naruto's fingers clenched on the railing, Sasuke's eyes narrowed just slightly, looking rather worried. Sakura/Ino smirked "Now all I have to do is make her forfeit" she muttered to no one in particular then turned to the examiner. "Excuse me, I would like to for-" she cut herself off at that point.

Naruto was about to shout at Sakura/Ino "Saku-" but that was as far as he got before he realized that Sakura/Ino had stopped dead in her tracks. Ino could feel that something was wrong; usually she would gain complete access to whichever body she took over but there was a brief moment when she felt an arousal of a presence.

"What's happening?" Naruto said. "A mind conflict?" Sasuke offered "Appears so" Kakashi answered. "This doesn't look good for our Ino" said Asuma.

Ino began to look inside of Sakura's mind to find whatever is in her but what she found was completely out of her expectations. A piercing scream filled the arena, earning a majority of alarmed looks from the spectators before a pulse of chakra spread out in the arena, brushing the senses of the inhabitants.

Wincing at the distasteful feeling of the chakra, Sasuke recovered then look down worriedly as his eyes automatically narrowed in on Sakura. His teammate was sitting down on the floor with her hands holding her up behind her and her knees bent up as she stared at Ino's limp body with wide emerald eyes, her face and neck drenched in sweat as her chest heaved up and down in pants.

The examiner quickly stepped in. "The immobility of Yamanaka Ino is past the time penalty. This match's victor is Haruno Sakura!" Hayate raised a hand on Sakura's side. Immediately the team members of the Sakura and Ino went down to retrieve their teammates as the medic team came in with two stretchers.

Sasuke approached the freaked out looking Sakura. "Sakura-" he said as he placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, the kunoichi's head snapped around, alarmed like a wild animal she instinctively struck back in attempt to protect herself.

Her hand felt a weapon beneath her palms and immediately lifted it off the ground and swung it at Sasuke in defense. "Sasuke look out!" Naruto called out. Sakura's hand was caught my Kakashi with the kunai stopping at barely an inch away from Sasuke's neck.

Sasuke looked down nervously at the weapon that's nearly pushed against his throat. He placed his hand over Sakura's fist then gave Kakashi a reassuring look, the jounin nodded as he let his student take over. Sakura's eyes were clouded as her breathing hitched and her hands trembled slightly.

Sasuke lowered her hand and spoke to her "Sakura, it's me" he said. Sakura paused at the sound of his voice then blinked a few times before she looked at Sasuke, still breathless. "S-Sasuke..?" she breathed, squinting her eyes slightly as her vision cleared up.

"Yeah" he said. Sakura's eyes looked around and landed on Ino who was being brought to medical attention on a stretcher. "Di… Did I win?" she said. "Yeah"

Sakura nodded in acknowledgement before she shuffled about, trying to stand on her own. Sasuke's hands lingered about her, ready to catch her if she falls. And he was right, she did fall. He held an arm around her waist as she held her up. Sakura breathed out a hoarse thanks to him before she attempted to stand again.

"Sakura-chan, are you sure you don't want to get a checkup?" Naruto asked worriedly. "No, It's fine. I'm alright, really" Sakura said, trying to sound alright. Naruto looked at her doubtfully then at Sasuke who didn't return the gaze but was focused on Sakura.

Sakura took a few steps before she stumbled a little, this time she felt someone grab at her wrist before lifting it. Sasuke slid Sakura's arm around his shoulder as he allowed her to lean against him. Sakura smiled and silently thanked her teammate.

As they were walking up the steps, the examiner began to roll for the next matchup. When the names blinked up on the screen, an arousal of murmurs erupted in the arena. Team Kakashi looked to see who was the next pair-indeed it was a feat to watch.

Hyuga Neji

Vs

Hyuga Hinata

The cousins finally spar.

Neji wasted no time in jumping down to the arena, awaiting his opponent that was nowhere to be seen on the sparring ground. "Where's Hinata?" Naruto asked. "Who knows" Sasuke said as he released Sakura to sit against the wall.

Naruto looked around, trying to spot her midnight sky colored hair as he walked around the stands. "Hinata!" he called out when he spotted her, jogging to her. When no reply came he called again "Hina-" he drew back as he halted a few feet away from her.

The timid girl stood rooted to the ground, her hand clenched on her chest as the other clutched her jacket-trembling. Naruto put on a grin as he put a hand on her shoulder "Hinata!" he said cheerfully, causing the girl spin around and look at him, alarmed by his presence. "N-Naruto-kun!" she stammered, her face turning red.

"What's wrong" he asked her. Hinata looked down and began to play with her fingers as she began to stutter "W-Well I… I don't t-think-" Naruto cut her off-

Naruto gave her a hard slap on the back, causing the kunoichi to stumble forward, startled. "What are you worrying here for, you'll do great. Good luck!" he said loudly with a wide grin plastered on his face.

Hinata felt the warmth rush to her face along with a new found confidence, her face fell serious as she straightened up. She looked towards Naruto and he gave her a firm nod in which she responded by doing the same before leaping over the rail and landing swiftly on her feet, greeting Neji.

Although she was practically brimming with confidence when she jumped down, she felt the same fear return once she was in Neji's presence. She swallowed nervously and took uneven breaths.

"Why don't you forfeit while you still can, _Hinata-sama_" Neji said, although he used a respectful honorific on her name but the way he said it was full of hatred. Hinata flinched under his glare. "I-I er…" Hinata felt small as her eyes shot at the ground then drifted up to meet Neji's eyes. Her eyes widened in fear by the sheer force of his glare.

"The only way you could beat me is that you change destiny, and it's impossible for people to change their destiny" Neji spat. Disheartened, Hinata looked down about to call in for a forfeit before a loud voice sounded-

"Oi, Put a sock in it will ya, Neji" Naruto shouted, looking challengingly at Neji. Neji glared up at the loud blond. "Naruto-kun…" Hinata breathed then fixed a serious look on her face _"That"s right, Naruto-kun will be watching. I can't let him down"_

"Let's fight, Neji nii-san" said Hinata, taking her stance. Looking irritated, Neji took his stance. The battle dragged out for nearly half an hour and Hinata was looking beaten already but she still refused to fall, her chest heaved up and down in pant a trickle of blood rolled down the side of her lips. She didn't waste any energy to wipe it away.

"Feel like forfeiting now?" Neji gave her one more chance.

Hinata clenched her teeth and charged at him, she attacked but her arm was caught and Neji hit yet another one of her chakra points, not wasting any time for recovery, she withdrew her hand and continued to attack, even after she managed to hit some of Neji's chakra points, but he didn't even look tired.

Hinata was knocked off her feet again and again but she just kept getting up, this irritated Neji to a certain extent before he decided to make sure she wouldn't be able to get on her feet again, so he aimed for her heart.

This time he took the first attack, Hinata took her stance and ran towards him, they collided and both of their fingers were directed at each other's heart.

There was a pregnant pause before Hinata finally let out a cough of blood then tired pants. Neji on the other hand didn't flinch._ "My attack didn't reach…" _ "Looks like Hinata"s at her limit" said Kurenai-sensei. "Hinata! Do your best!" called out Naruto encouragingly.

Hinata knocked away Neji's hand and tried to attack him again, but Neji palmed her stomach and sent her flying backwards. Neji straightened up "Just give it up, Hinata-sama. You can"t fool my eyes, just because you keep getting up on your feet doesn't prove your worth as a shinobi, all you can do is continue to suffer from people looking down on your" Neji said before turning his back on her.

"That should be it for her" said Hayate to himself before he opened his mouth to announce the winner "Hyuga Neji is th-" but he was cut off by a voice, the same voice that reignited Hinata's spirit.

"Don't stop the match!" called out Naruto.

"What are you saying, you idiot. She clearly can't-" but before Sasuke could complete his sentence, he saw Hinata pushing herself up, slowly but surely. "You're wrong" Hinata said all of the sudden. Neji's scowl deepened as he watched his cousin pant with her head hung low. "You're wrong, Neji nii-san…" Hinata added hoarsely "Because I can see" she panted "that you are suffering more than me…" she winced but lifted her head up to face Neji fully "You are the one who is confused and suffering within the fate of the head and branch families." She ended firmly, her tired looking lavender eyes looking straight into his byakugan.

Upon the mention of the Hyuga houses, Neji snapped completely. His byakugan grew more intense and he shot at his cousin, this time he was aiming to kill her.

"The match is over!" Hayate called out but Neji had no intention of stopping "This isn't good" "Run! Hinata!" Naruto called out from the stands. However, Hinata stood rooted to the ground, too exhausted to move a muscle.

As Neji was 5 foot from Hinata, an explosion of white smoke surrounded him and when it cleared, the jounins and Hayate stood around him, holding him back in every way. "Stop it, Neji" his bowl headed green jumpsuit teacher said.

Neji clenched his teeth bitterly "Kh… Why did the other jounins come out too, is it because the Head family gets special treatment?" he said, muscles twitching.

"You made a passionate promise to me that you won't argue about the head family ever again, Neji" said Guy-sensei. Hinata suddenly broke out coughing in uncontrollable fits as she bent forward towards her knees, clutching to her chest.

"Hinata!" Kurenai called out to her before she lets go of Neji's arm and runs to her student" said. She laid her down, facing upwards and unzipped her jacket then checked her pulse, looking alarmed she said "This isn't good, she's not going through ventricular fibrillation" then looked at Neji. "Was he trying to kill her?"

"Hinata!" Naruto called out, running to her. Upon hearing the sound of her crush's voice her eyes opened slightly trying to find the face of the loud blond. A small smile appeared upon her lips as Naruto's worried face came into view "Naruto…kun" she breathed "Was I… able to change?" she asked, her face twisting into a painful smile "Even just a little…" her voice trailed and her eyes drifting close.

"Hinata…!" Naruto said, alarmed before he was interrupted. "Oi, The dropout over there" said Neji. Naruto turned around, looking seriously at Neji. "Let me tell you two things" Neji narrowed his eyes at Naruto "If you're a ninja then you should stop the unsightly cheering for a stranger, also- a dropout will always remain a dropout, they cannot change"

Naruto straightened and faced him "We don't know if we don't try" scowling. Neji smirked challengingly.

Sasuke leapt from the stands and landed in between Neji and Naruto with his hands in his pockets. "Move it Sasuke!" Naruto swung his arm to the side for emphasis. "Naruto" the blond heard a familiar voice call out to him, then looked up to see his kunoichi teammate giving him an exhausted smile as she dangled her arms on the lower rail.

"Calm down, you'll have your chance" she told him. Naruto gave another scowl to Neji before he pursed his lips and decided to let it go "Ahh fine, I get it" Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head vigorously. Hinata coughed again "Medical team! What are you doing!" said Kurenai shouted. "Excuse us" said one of the members as everyone allowed them through to Hinata. Placing the unconscious girl onto the stretcher and moving her out of the arena with Kurenai following closely behind.

Naruto watched worriedly as their figures got smaller down the arena 'Hinata… you did great' he thought then turned to Neji, shooting him a glare before retreating up the stands with Sasuke.

The Next match up was shown; they looked at the board that said

Rock Lee

Vs

Gaara

The fight didn't end very well, Gaara had gotten out with barely a few bruises whereas Lee's left arm and leg were completely crushed by his Desert Funeral. The mere thought of that scene sent shivers down everyone's spine.

"Wh-Who is that guy…" said Naruto.

"I don"t know, but let's hope none of you get paired against him in the final rounds" their silver headed teacher said. The team silently agreed.

The name match up was Temari vs Tenten.

(A/N: From here on I'm just going to brush through the minor battles cause it's taking too long and I have a feeling you guys are getting bored =w=)

Next was Kankuro vs Choji

Choji forfeited due to the advice from Shikamaru.

Next up was Shino vs Misumi

Misumi put a vain fight since all he could do was reform his body to any shape whereas Shino used his bugs to drain his chakra dry before implanting a poison that knocked him out.

Shikamaru forfeited a match against Dosu due to it being too "Troublesome" and Kin and Zaku were both disqualified due to the refusal to engage battle.

"It's finally over!" Naruto announced loudly, "That means we all made it past the first round" Sakura beamed. "So what, It's not like we're chuunin yet" Sasuke scoffed. Naruto brushed off Sasuke's negative comment "We should celebrate!" he said. Sakura looked excited as she nodded furiously.

"Great! It'll be Kakashi-sensei"s treat!" said Naruto, grinning slyly.

Kakashi chuckled as he ruffled the blond's hair "I get it, I get it" the moment was broken when the examiner's voice sounded within the arena once more.

"Alright, that concludes the third round, you have 1 month to prepare for the 4th round, the matchups will be shown on the screen" said Hayate, raising a hand towards the screen.

The board turned white and there were 8 names and 4 pairs of matchups

First Match

Uzumaki Naruto

Vs

Hyuga Neji

Second Match

Haruno Sakura

Vs

Temari

Third match

Kankuro

Vs

Aburame Shino

Fourth Match

Gaara

Vs

Uchiha Sasuke

Shocked and alarmed as they read the names of the fourth match again and again to confirm reality-It was real alright. An excited smirk spread across Sasuke's face "Interesting" he said.

"Teme, you're so screwed!" Naruto stated bluntly and very loudly. "S-Sasuke, this might not be a very good idea, maybe you should forfeit." Sakura said, nervously. "Hah! Yeah Sasuke! Don't worry, I'll let you watch helplessly from the sidelines as I get promotion- BAHAHAHAHA" Naruto said.

Kakashi looked at his student "It's your choice, Sasuke" Sasuke snorted "Who's backing out? Idiot. I'm going for the next round" he said. "Hmph!" Naruto huffed angrily. Sakura looked crestfallen and worried as she glanced back at the stand across of them- at Gaara. The latter was nothing like she had ever seen before, his chakra levels are nowhere near a genin level's. She could somehow relate the feel of his chakra to Naruto's.

She turned back to look at Sasuke, the dark haired genin noticed her gaze and looked towards her. Sakura looked worried, she opened her mouth to say something before Sasuke cut her off "Watch me, I'll definitely win" he said with a confident smirk. Sakura couldn't explain why but she had suddenly felt the urge to just believe him. A smile broke out on lips as she nodded firmly. "Okay"

After a long night at Ichiraku Ramen (for Kakashi) the team split ways and headed back to their homes with the exhausted genins deciding that sleeping in would be a good idea for tomorrow's plan. Sakura and Sasuke, who were heading back to the same home; walked in silence to a certain extent before Sakura broke it "What are you going to do for the preparations, Sasuke" she said softly.

Sasuke shrugged "I don't know, train. I guess" he said. "I mean, how?" said Sakura. They both knew that Gaara wasn't someone you can defeat with training within a time span of a _month. _Sasuke needed more help. "I'll think of something" was all he said. Instinctively, Sasuke turned into an alley which he usually used as a short cut to the Uchiha district, forgetting that it was already passed midnight.

Sakura trailed closely behind Sasuke before the latter stopped. His head lifted as he sniffed the air. "The smell of alcohol" Sakura took the words out of his mouth. Sasuke scowled at his carelessness. "Hey look what we have here" a drunken voice hiccupped at the end of the alley. Sasuke and Sakura remained composed.

"Are they your friends? Sasuke" Sakura asked. Sasuke twitched, not really wanting to answer such a question. Before Sakura knew it, a man had wrapped his arm around her shoulder "Yeah… we're his friends, why don't we all become friends" he sneered. Sakura stumbled when the man leaned his weight onto her.

The next moment, she no longer felt any weight on her. Instead, Sasuke stood beside her- his hand holding on the man's arm, twisting it out of shape. The pain had just registered in his brain and he cried out in pain. Sakura looked at Sasuke curiously, the latter was glaring dangerously at the drunken man, the irritation and anger reflecting upon his eyes. "Sasuke?" Sakura said.

"Don't. Touch her" Sasuke snarled, hands tightening around the man's arm before throwing him off a few feet away. He turned around to face the crowd of drunken thugs that had gathered at the alley exit.

Although Sasuke's stature was small when compared to the thugs but the sheer force of the aura he emitted was enough to send them shuffling off their route. Sasuke took Sakura by the hand and dragged the confused kunoichi out of the alley before they decide to jump them. He did _not _need any more action for the day. "W-Wait Sasuke, what's wrong" Sakura cried out, trying to keep up with Sasuke's long strides.

She look back at the thugs and gave them a brief wave before turning back, leaving behind a bunch grunting older men "That girl is totally wacko"

"Aren't they your friends, Sasuke" Sakura asked just barely able to keep up. Sasuke felt his eye twitch irritably; _can this girl be any denser? _He took a deep breath and looked back at Sakura, his footsteps slowing down gradually "Sakura, the next time an older stranger touches you, hit him" Sasuke said. Sakura looked at him, questionably before she halted in the front porch of the manor. "I wonder if Itachi-san's home" she said before catching up with Sasuke.

The latter scoffed and opened the door "I doubt so". As if on cue, a kunai shot out of the small gap of the door. Eyes widening, Sasuke instantly ducked his head out of the way, avoiding getting a kunai lodging into his brain.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed dangerously as he armed himself, ready for anything that comes out of that door then chuckling emerged from within the manor and Sasuke's face fell, completely un-amused. "Nii-san" he said it with a tone that was completely un-interested; though his eyes showed otherwise. He pushed the door open completely and Itachi stepped out with a smile on his face "How are you, Sasuke" he asked. "Fine" Sasuke answered dismissively before he slipped past Itachi and through the door. "I'm doing fine as well, thanks for asking" Itachi said sarcastically.

"Welcome home, Itachi-san" a soft voice said from the doorstep. Itachi had to look down at Sakura to actually look at her face to face he gave her a smile "I'm back" he said before stepping aside to let Sakura in. "So how was the exam" Itachi said as they entered, "We're through to the 4th round, if we win then we'll be promoted" Sakura informed rather formally. Itachi nodded approvingly "Nothing less from my little brother, right Sasuke?" Itachi said, looking to his brother who was leaning against the kitchen sink with his arms crossed. "Hn" was all Sasuke offered, his mind was clearly somewhere else.

Itachi's brows furrowed "Did something happen, Sasuke" his brother's voice had suddenly became stern and Sasuke knew when that happens, his brother gets serious. And Itachi can be extremely intimidating when he's serious, even for Sasuke. Sasuke glanced up from the floor and briefly met eyes with Sakura who was standing just a little behind Itachi. She looked at him worriedly as if pleading him to tell his brother.

A thought had suddenly crossed his mind and Sasuke pushed himself off the sink and faced his brother "Nii-san" he began "Do you know a man named Orochimaru?" he asked. Itachi looked mildly surprised as he said "He's one of the S-class rogue-nin in the ANBU hit list" Itachi stated, his eyes narrowed just slightly "Why?"

His fingers lifted hesitantly to his collar before he boldly tugged at it, revealing to his brother- the mark of Orochimaru. Itachi's eyes instantly narrowed with anger, even taking Sasuke by surprise. His brother never got angry or at least he had never seen his brother get angry, he knew how much his brother loved him and how much he is willing to sacrifice for him, Because of this, Sasuke tries to act more mature and pushes him away in hopes to stop his brother from worrying and to show him that his little brother is fully capable of taking care of himself.

Itachi's hand twitched and Sasuke knew that he was trying not to let his anger get the best of him but why was he angry, was it something he did? Was he angry that he had not been strong enough to fend off Orochimaru? What if he was disappointed in him? Instantly, Sasuke could feel his nerves wracking and some part of him wanted to take his brother by the shoulders and shake him for some answers. Itachi let out a sigh and placed his fingers on his eyes and rubbed "Sasuke, do you feel strange? Like there's anything wrong with your body?" Itachi asked.

Sasuke eyed him suspiciously before answering him "No, not particularly" he said. "Then how about during the test" Itachi asked. Memories from the seal taking control were immediately evoked and Itachi got the answer just by the looks of Sasuke's face. "Sasuke, pull out of the 4th round" Itachi stated bluntly. Sasuke's eyes widened slightly and he frowned "What? Why?" he asked. "You should know what that seal does to you, it is still too early for you. Your body will not be able to handle the stress" Itachi said, staring straight into Sasuke's eyes, effectively making his point.

"This seal is nothing but an obstacle; I can handle it just fine. I am _not_ pulling out" he snapped, challenging his brother's gaze. "Sasuke, I am your guardian. You will do as I say and pull out from the competition!" Itachi raised his voice. Sasuke looked taken aback, this was the first time his brother had raised his voice on him and he couldn't ignore the pang in his chest as he did so- he was nothing more than a child. Sasuke gritted his teeth before retorting back "What are you hiding from me" Sasuke demanded. Itachi didn't answer. "You know something about this seal, don't you. I have the rights to know seeing that it's on me now" Sasuke said, his look was firm on Itachi.

"If that seal isn't controlled properly, your body won't be able to handle it. Sasuke you could easily injure yourself" Itachi said, this time he was openly voicing his worry. Sasuke hadn't expected his brother to easily give him an answer like that and didn't quite know what to say. He looked down on the wooden panels for a moment there was nothing but silent between the two brother before Sasuke decided to cut in "You don't have to worry about me, nii-san" he said quietly then looking up to meet the worried eyes of his brother "I'm not a kid anymore"

Itachi knew, he knew that Sasuke had grown to a splendid full-fledged shinobi worthy of the konoha symbol but some part of him never wanted to hear those words from his little brother. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair "I know, Sasuke… I know" he answered just as softly.

Sakura felt like she could finally breath with the tension disappearing and she couldn't help but smile at their obvious display of brotherly affection for one another.

The next day.

As usual, the kunoichi was up before anyone else in the house and by the time they had woken up, she already had breakfast laid out neatly on the table for them. Itachi, was surprisingly not much of a morning person as he entered the kitchen with his messy bed hair and his ponytail that was obviously tied by someone that's half asleep. Sakura stood staring at the Itachi with a bemused look on her face.

Finally Itachi pulled out his infamous dazzlingly fake smile "Is there something on my face? Sakura" Itachi said. Sakura jerked a little, snapping back from where ever her mind was. "Oh, I'm sorry. It's just… I didn't think Itachi-san was the type to dislike mornings" she said. Itachi pointed at his hair "This is about my hair isn't it" he said, his smile never faltering. "N-No! I didn't mean any disrespect by that I-" but Sakura was interrupted by a stifled chuckled "It's alright, Sakura" he assured her "It's not that I don't like mornings. I'm just not very used to sleeping for more than half an hour" he said before pulling off his pony tail and raking his fingers through it, effectively combing down the stray strands of hair that stood up.

Sakura smiled, finding that rather amusing as she set down the last of the breakfast before taking a step back to admire her work. She looked back up to Itachi "Breakfast is ready" she said with a smile. Itachi looked rather curious to this as he pulled a seat and sat down "Do you do this every day?" he said. "Mm… this is still relatively new to me. But yeah, whenever we have the time for breakfast" she said, washing the excess dishes.

Itachi smirked, the dishes she made somehow resembled their mother's cooking. _How nostalgic._ Itachi picked up his chopstick, moments later he heard his little brother's footsteps on the stairs. Sasuke appeared in the kitchen, sitting down automatically and starting on his breakfast. Sakura joined them awhile later. Breakfast was silent the whole way before Sakura picked up a presence outside the house.

"Do you need something, Kakashi-sensei" she said all of the sudden. Immediately, both Uchiha males turned to the sliding door that led to their backyard. The door slid open and revealed the silver haired jounin, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Morning to you to, Sakura" he said before his attention fell upon the rare sight before him "I don't think I've ever seen you sit and eat breakfast like a normal person" he said, crossing his arms and leaning on the door frame. Itachi flashed Kakashi a smile "It's nice to see you too, Kakashi"

"Have you eaten, sensei" Sakura asked, always putting everyone else's well-being before hers "No, it's fine. Sit back down, Sakura it's not good to leave the table before you're done" Kakashi said. Sakura sank back down to her seat as her teacher pulled out a chair. "So Sasuke, up for some training?" Kakashi said.

Sasuke glanced up at his teacher, giving him a confused look at he chewed. "You are up against the brat who took down Rock Lee without even needing to take a step, you think I'm just going to sit by and watch as my student gets creamed?" Kakashi mocked.

Shooting him a glare, he swallowed before he retorted with a rather lame come back "I'm not going to lose" he said, his eyes shimmered with determination. Kakashi stood up "Great, we'll start after breakfast. Meet me at the usual place" Kakashi said before he exploded in a puff of smoke. Sasuke looked rather annoyed as he grumbled something about a stupid old fart that does what he likes.

Itachi raised his eyebrows in amusement and poked his little brother on the forehead, Sasuke winced then retorted with a glare.

Though Sasuke acts coldly towards their teacher, Sakura could tell Sasuke looks up with Kakashi as his eyes were practically burning with excitement as he finished off the last of his breakfast. He stood up and was about to make a zip line for the door before he paused and turned to Sakura who was clearing away the dishes. "Are you going to be alright on your own, Sakura" he asked, trying not to sound like he really cared, and failing rather miserably.

Sakura smiled "I'll think of something to do" she assured. Sasuke didn't waste another moment before he disappeared out the door. Sakura straightened as she lifted the dishes off the table. "Would you like something to drink, Itachi-san?" Sakura offered. "No, I'll help with the dishes"

Sakura accepted his offer.

Enjoying the silence, Sakura would rinse the suds from the dishes before handing it to Itachi to dry and put them back into the cupboard. "Say… You wouldn't happen to be an expert in range attacks would you? Itachi-san" Sakura looked up at Itachi curiously as she handed him a plate. "I might know a little something about it, why?" he said. Sakura focused back onto the dishes "My next opponent is a wind technique user and I'm not exactly confident about going against her" she confessed almost ashamedly. "Ah… You've been keeping this from Sasuke" Itachi teased.

A small smile brushed her features at the mention of her teammate. "It's just that, both Naruto and Sasuke seem so confident in what they're going to do. I don't want to hold the team down" Sakura said.

"Alright"

Sakura's ears perked up, she looked up to meet his eyes "I'll help you out" Itachi smirked "Only if you can keep up"

Meanwhile…

As Sakura and Sasuke now have their own coaches, Naruto felt left out. He had just finished his breakfast at Ichiraku's before he decided to go look for his teammates and ask them if they wanted to train together- but soon found that they weren't in the manor. He figured they must've left to train on their own and leaving him to feel left out.

"Stupid Sasuke..." he grumbled as he kicked a rock "Hogging Sakura-chan all to himself" he kicked another pebble, this time it flew above the fence of hot spring center, Naruto cringed and awaited the sound of destruction that was about to come. But instead he is greeted with a loud and rather unsexy "Gah!" from a man. Naruto paused for a moment before the sound of screaming women echoed down the streets.

Naruto found that it began raining wash buckets, wooden slippers and even soap. The next thing he saw fall from the sky was an old drunkard that landed face first right in front of him. Naruto crouched down and poked him "Hey old guy, you alright?" he said.

Within seconds the drunkard was back on his few, still swaying as his nose bled. "O-Oi, your nose is bleeding" Naruto said. "Yeah, sure whatever kid" the man waved at him dismissively before he jumped off. Curious to what the man was doing, Naruto decided to follow him but found himself lost in a rather large hot spring rehabilitation center. Naruto looked around, trying to spot the mysterious old man. "Where did he go…?" Naruto said to no one in particular. He glanced down and found that he was about to step into the water.

Knowing that he was capable of water walking, he didn't much mind to it. But when he took that step, he found himself plunged into the water. Confused, Naruto got back on to solid ground and tried again, thinking maybe it was because he wasn't concentrating.

But again and again, he just couldn't seem to be able to find his footing. Or even control his chakra.

Suddenly shifting his attention away from the naked women to the boy in his pants was the old hermit that sat on the rooftop, hidden from the eyes of the women. A strange curiosity was aroused within him; there was just something about that boy that intrigued him so he decided to approach him.

"What are you doing, kid" said the man.

Naruto looked up from the water and instantly lose whatever footing he had in the water and fell back in. His head resurfaced as he gasped for hair "I'm not a kid; I'm Uzumaki Naruto! A full-fledged Konoha-shinobi!" Naruto announced proudly. The man raised a brow _'Uzumaki…?' _

"Uh huh-" the man's eyes fell on the mark that was shown on his belly and his eyes almost lit up with realization. He lifted Naruto and flung the struggling boy over his shoulder and placed him back on solid ground. "What are you trying to do-" Naruto was cut off when the man sunk his hand into his stomach, making him cough and lean forward.

He tried to sooth his uncontrollable coughs as he glared up at the white haired man. "Why'd you do that for, you old fart!" Naruto shouted.

The man twitched, "O-Old fart, you dare call one of the great sannin, Jiraiya-sama an old fart!?" said the man said. Naruto tilted his head to the side "San-nin?" he said.

"You've never heard of the great Sannin?! You're really stupid." Jiraiya said. Naruto was red with anger and embarrassment "Hey! I'm not stupid!" he snapped. Jiraiya winced at the volume capacity of the blonde boy "Anyway, just try your water walk again" he said in an uninterested tone. Naruto gave the man a confused look before obliging, making sure to pay full attention to his chakra, he stepped lightly onto the water then cringed, expecting him to fall into the water. But when his body stood firmly on the water, he looked down and realized that he had no troubles with his water walking.

"Whoa, what'd you do old… man?" Naruto realized the lack of the man's presence again but this time he spotted Jiraiya clinging onto a rooftop, snickering excitedly at what's over on the other side. Curiosity got the best of him as he decided to go and see what was so special on the other side.

"Hey, thanks old-" Naruto had yet to complete his sentence before Jiraiya tumbled down the roof like a retarded lizard. "What are you looking at" Naruto turned his attention from Jiraiya to the naked girls in a hot spring. Naruto could feel the blood shooting from his nose and knocking him off the roof.

"Did you hear something?"

"Is it a pervert?"

"How scary…!"

Naruto caressed his bloody nose and pointed at Jiraiya with a trembling finger "Y-You're a perverted old man!" he shouted. Jiraiya's face was drained of color before he lunged himself at Naruto, slapping a hand over the blonde's mouth and effectively silencing him.

"Did you hear that? There's a pervert!"

"Let's get out of here"

The sound of bodies leaving the water was the sound of utter disappointment to Jiraiya. "Alright kid, what do you want" he said, releasing Naruto. The blonde faced him with excitement "Hey, since you're such a great shinobi like you said, can you train me?" he asked, the eagerness was practically over flowing from his body.

Jiraiya sighed and shook his head "Sorry kid, but I don't take brats as students" Jiraiya turned, about to leave and find his next target to 'Gather information' on before he was stopped by a voice. "Hey, Ero-sennin"

Jiraiya, frowned. Clearly annoyed by Naruto's persistence "Look kid, I'm not going to-" he paused halfway as he laid eyes on the naked blonde female with bits of her part covered by steam in place of Naruto. "Will you train me now" the blonde girl coaxed seductively. Jiraiya nodded viciously like a hungry dog as he reached for the girl.

And with a puff of smoke, the girl transformed back to her original form- Naruto. Jiraiya's face immediately fell and he sighed as Naruto celebrated loudly.

Next Chapter

"She's using a blade now?"

"Impossible, her technique overpowered my wind"

"Stand up! Naruto!"

"I told you, I don"t know when to give up"

"Chidori!"

* * *

So how was it, throw me a review and let me know or you could private message me if there is something you know understand or something that is incorrect and it's bothering you and you'd like me to correct it ASAP then go ahead and message/review away. I'll give you a gummi bear if you review :D

I have a question for you guys now.

Who do you think is more perverted? Kakashi, Jiraiya or Orochimaru? (You can include Kabuto too but he's more of an underling)


	6. Konoha Crisis

******I'm so so sorry for my infrequent updates, I've been rather busy as of late but you'll probably want to get to the story, but I must warn you that this chapter has no Sasusaku moments, the next chapter will though and I PROMISE that the next chapter will be up soon, hopefully in a few days or so. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. **

* * *

**Konoha Crisis**

A month was over before they knew it, to Team Kakashi, every day was a day of torturous training to prepare them for this very day. The whole village is in uproar, especially about the match between the Uchiha prodigy and Sabaku no Gaara. The whole arena had been packed since dawn and Naruto found that he had overslept and was currently running late.

"Ahhh! How could I oversleep! I'm going to miss Sakura-chan's match!" he shouted as he tore through the streets of the village.

He entered the arena, relieved to still be able to hear the sound of the proctor's voice. Naruto panted, holding his knees and forcing himself to look up and try to spot Sakura in the arena but before he could do so, he felt a presence right next to him all of a sudden

Naruto's body tensed up and straightened instinctively. He frowned fearfully at who he caught sight of. "Geez, Shino. Don't just sneak up on me like that. I might kill you by accident you know" Naruto said, proudly.

"Alright then, but I was standing here first" Shino stated in his monotonous voice.

Naruto thought for a moment "Strange, I don't remember seeing anyone when I got here" Naruto shrugged it off.

'_Well sorry for not having a more noticeable presence' _

However the bug user's sulking went unnoticed to the oblivious blonde as he questioned the change of examiners. "Who's that?" Naruto said, peering over the railing.

Shino, still sulking obliged to the question "Shiranui Genma, the replacement examiner" Naruto tilted his head in question.

"What's wrong with the other guy?"

"Hm? Didn't you hear? Gekkou Hayate was found dead last night"

Naruto's widened in alarm as his head snapped in Shino's direction "W-Who did it" Naruto asked nervously.

Shino shrugged "They're still investigating it".

Naruto swallowed before their attention was snatched back by the arena "Haruno Sakura, is Haruno Sakura here?" Genma called out into the stands.

Temari was already down in the arena, wearing a confident smirk on her face as she waited for her opponent. "Tch, chickened out?" she snorted to herself.

Naruto hammered the railing "Damn it, where's Sakura-chan"

He turned around, determined to go search for his teammate for she flashed right before his eyes as a pink blur in the wind, jumping off the rail she landed swiftly in the arena.

She stood up and secured the strap that was held diagonally across her chest with a katana at the back then walked to the middle where she stood face to face with her opponent. "Took you long enough, I was starting to think you chickened out, little girl" Temari mocked with a smirked that could only mean one thing, she was going to annihilate her opponent.

Sakura remained composed, showing no signs of weakness. Naruto knew that look; it was as if she returned to being Iwa's assassin from when they first met. Itachi walked up the steps calmly, walking over to the railing- crossing his arms with a delicate smirk on his face- waiting to see the result of his training.

Genma looked at the two then raised his hand, there was a suspenseful thrill dangling in the atmosphere- first to attack gains the upper hand. _Or so they said._

Genma's hand came down and Sakura immediately shot backwards and away from Temari, earning a few gasps from the crowd. Temari grinned "It's no use running" she opened up half her face and drag it across the air "Kamaitaichi no Jutsu (Wind Scythe Technique)" Eying the approaching tornado, Sakura skid to a stop before forming her seals "Katon, Karyuu Endan!"

The overwhelmingly large flames completely snuffed out Temari's attack, not only that but forcing her to take cover in the trees as well. Sakura earned a few impressed nods from audience. 'Damn it, I shouldn't have underestimated her'

Up in the VIP viewing balcony was the Hokage and Kazekage. The masked Kazekage chuckled "That Haruno girl is quite something, isn't she, Hiruzen?" the kazekage peered over at the Hokage who was still looking at the fight. The only response from the hokage was a grunt of acknowledgement, and then his eyes narrowed just slightly. Noting the eerie way the kazekage commented on the fight, there was just something about the way he said it that made it so… unpleasant.

Temari decided to play serious now; her fan was opened up- showing off all three of its purple dots. Alarmed with a sudden presence, Temari leapt off a branch and attempted to maneuver away from Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi persisted, she didn't show herself openly but Temari knew she was there. In the crowd, they could only see the rustling of branches that brushed atop the trees.

Having made her decision, Temari stopped herself on the branch and pulled her body around, swinging her fan in the process "Fuuton! Tatsu no Oshigoto (Wind technique! Severing Pressure!) at once, her technique cleared out half the forest and left nothing but the trunk of the trees. Amongst the fallen trees and leaves, Temari's eyes strained to look for any signs of life.

Sakura had barely managed to avoid being crushed underneath the fallen trees, she sat hidden behind a thin layer of leaves from the fallen branch of a tree. Stilling her breathing in order for her to stay under Temari's radar.

Instinctively her hand twitched with the ache of battle and ultimately led to her cover being blown, knowing she couldn't remain here for another second she sped away from under the branches, ducking underneath a few fallen trees to get away.

Where ever she ran, a trail of explosives followed. She frantically shot out from the blazing forest only to come face to face with her opponent. "Fusajin no Jutsu (Dust Wind Technique)" Unprepared, Sakura was caught by surprised when dust was thrown in her eyes and temporary disabling her sight.

She screwed her eyes shut and stumbled backwards with pain shooting up her eyes; opening her eyes now would be too painful to bear and she doubted she'd be able to see. Using her opponent's handicap to her benefit, Temari pulled her fan back and got ready to bring out her tornado for the finishing move.

But before her attack could lock in on Sakura, the latter leaped back and landed not so smoothly but nonetheless she managed to escape having to deal with Temari's wind. Sakura reached for her blade and unsheathed it before throwing the sheath on the ground.

Temari frowned, trying to predict what her opponent was trying to do next. She narrowed her eyes down on Sakura's eyes that muttered words she couldn't quite comprehend from her distance before she slashed her sword to the side. The suspense of Sakura's lack of activity was driving Temari over the edge. Her body twitched anxiously her mind debating over whether to initiate attack or not.

Kankuro's brows furrowed as he gripped the railing "Stay calm, Temari. Don't be reckless. Don't attack" he mumbled under his breath as if his sister would hear him.

Temari was overwhelmed by the anxiety and gave in, "Dai Kamaitachi no Jutsu (Cyclone Wind Scythe Technique)" she pulled her fan across and the lethal wind sliced through everything and anything. However he found that Sakura had just disappeared into thin air.

"Temari, what are you doing!? She's behind you!"

Temari heard the voice of her brother from the stands, she whirled around frantically just fast enough to avoid a blade in her back but instead it caught her in the side. Temari immediately leaped away from Sakura in an attempt to widen the distance between her and her opponent. Sakura once again disappeared into thin air and strange sensation which she did not catch earlier chilled her bones and Temari immediately realized the danger she was in. She was affected by Sakura's genjutsu.

Her realization came too late as the mix of cackling sounds of lightning and fire followed by the whistling of the wind that Temari was too familiar with reached her heads. "Sandagamae Inshi Ookami (Triple Element Wolf)" Sakura was holding her wrist and pointing her clawed hand at Temari from behind her.

Fierce Lightning, Wind and Fire chakra was formed into a shape of a wolf, it stood growling at Temari turned around when she spun around immediately she attempted to counter it with around round of her Daikamaitaichi no jutsu, again the gust of wind traveled towards Sakura but the pink haired kunoichi didn't so much as flinch before she let loose her wolf.

Everything around the wolf seemed to disintegrate as it charged towards Temari, the Suna-nin stood rooted to the ground, gripping her fully opened fan in fear- _she couldn't move_. The wolf embedded its teeth into Temari's shoulder, knocking her backwards as well as forcing her to release her weapon. Temari's body fell limp with a thud.

"The winner is Haruno Sakura" announced Genma.

Whistles and wild clapping erupted in the arena, Sakura swayed on her feet slightly as light gray spots began to cloud her vision. 'Looks like that was still a little but too excessive for me' she thought as she regained her composure. She remembered what Itachi told her about the exams, about how the exam not only serve as a test of skill but it was also a way to sell your skills to daimyos and nobles, the more you overdo it, the more memorable you'll be and more jobs will be entrusted to you. That is how you make a living in the shinobi world. Sakura was snapped out of her reverie when she heard her teammate's cry of praise.

"Great Job Sakura-chan!" Naruto had called from the stands as he waved vigorously to grab her attention, upon doing so he had given her a thumbs up as well as a grin from ear to ear.

Kankuro had his eyes widened, his fingers clenched around the railing as he watched his own sister being carried off on a stretched by the medical group "I-Impossible, Temari lost" This has obviously aroused a series of surprised murmurs and confused whispers within the crowd. Temari, a member of the renowned Suna siblings' genin team, defeated by a no-name Konoha kunoichi.

Sakura let out a breath before proceeding up the steps to join her blonde teammate just as the proctor calls his name. As Naruto's cheeky grin came to view at the top of the stairs, Sakura was about to greet him before she tripped at the last step, stumbling forward only to be steadied by Naruto. "Slow down, Sakura-chan" Naruto chuckled. Sakura looked up to meet his pure cerulean eyes as they squinted with his smile "It's my turn now, watch me!" he said enthusiastically as he jogged three steps at a time down the steps that Sakura had just come up from.

Sakura didn't even get a chance to wish him good luck before he was already down in the arena, then it suddenly came to her attention that her raven haired teammate was nowhere to be found. She frowned as scanned the crowds for Sasuke and confirmed that Sasuke was indeed missing from the scene. She jerked slightly at the sudden shout that erupted from the arena, signifying the start of Naruto's battle against Neji. "Begin!"

Sakura found her attention immediately shift to her knuckle-head of a teammate.

Naruto's match started out to his disadvantage, being struck down again and again but halfway through the match it had become personal and Neji had apparently struck a nerve within Naruto, after he lectured Naruto about the shinobi principles and the cruel fate of those who have no talent. "You can struggle all you want, but we all suffer from an unalterable fate. Failures will remain as such!"- Naruto didn't accept it one bit.

As Neji completely seal off each and every one of Naruto's chakra points, the latter dropped to the ground-limp. "It's over, he can't stand anymore" said Neji, closing his eyes but before he could savor his victory, there came a cry from the stands.

"Naruto! Good luck!"

Naruto shifted his head and manage to catch a glimpse of his pink haired teammate, waving at him. "Heh, what took you so long... Sakura-chan" Naruto's finger twitched before his armed moved. Neji whirled around to look outrageously at his opponent. Naruto spoke in a forced tone "I told you….. I don't know when to give up" swaying on his feet as he once again faced Neji.

Neji's jaw tightened "Fool" he spat. "You should've just stayed down"

Naruto gave Neji a smug look. "Now that you've seal off my chakra points, it makes it easier to do this" said Naruto as he form a seal with his hands and Neji watched his opponent's chakra with his Byakugan. Naruto's chakra circulated at a faster rate than most humans could withstand, and within the blue chakra that was growing out of control was a red destructive chakra that was slowly manifesting from within the jinchuuriki.

And soon it, Neji no longer needed his Byakugan to see Naruto's chakra. "His chakra... took form?!" Neji said with a mixture of shock and horror. Naruto was completely engulfed by an angry looking red chakra that took the form of a creature with ears and two tails, his eyes were red and slit, his nails were extended and sharp and the whisker marks on his cheeks darkened. Neji pulled himself together and struck before Naruto had a chance to get ready.

But he stopped in his tracks as sudden explosion was caused by the sheer intensity of Naruto's chakra. Neji instead shielded his face from the rushing wind with his hands, as he tried not to let Naruto slip from his sights. When the wind died down, Naruto stood looking at him with a fierce look in his eyes, his hands at his sides- clawed and poised to strike. His shoulders heaved up and down and his knees were slightly bent.

Neji's look hardened and he resumed his attack, charging at Naruto but was easily thrown back when Naruto landed a hard punch to his gut. Neji felt the wind leave his punch as he gasped for air, Naruto ran after Neji's soaring body but the Hyuga retaliated quickly as he regained control of his body, avoiding a punch that came at him from the side but before he could collect himself again. Naruto slammed his foot down onto his shoulder, causing Neji to pummel to the ground on his hands and knees.

Before Naruto could land another hit, Neji's body fell limp. Naruto stood towering over Neji's unconscious body. "This proves that a failure... _can_ surpass a genius" said Naruto, panting as his chakra waned. There was silence followed by a few distracted claps before the whole stadium erupted in roars of cheers. Sakura glanced around at the people that applauded then smiled _'You'll be a great hokage someday, Naruto' _

Naruto straightened and looked around at the audience that surrounded him before he pumped a fist into the air, followed by a very excited "Yeah!"

Despite his fatigue, Naruto's footsteps were light when he jogged back up the stairs. "You were great, Naruto!" Sakura called out to him before he reached the top of the stairs. Pleased to be greeted by his pink headed teammate, he felt his chest swell with ego as he boasted "Sakura-chan! Did you see that? I beat Neji!"

Sakura nodded "I did, I was watching the entire time, Naruto" she assured her teammate before he continued his rambling about how great he was, in the midst of hearing himself talk, Naruto noticed the nervous look on Sakura's face as she occassionally glanced at the entrance of the stadium between his words. "You alright? Sakura-chan" Naruto asked with genuine concern. Sakura's attention was snapped back to the teammate before her "Oh, no. I'm fine, Naruto" she assured him then gave the entrance another glance "It's just..." her voice trailed and her eyes glanced up to meet Naruto's eyes "Don't you think Sasuke a bit too late?" by the way her eyebrows were arched down and the look in her eyes, Naruto could tell that she was seriously worry and was on the verge of panicking if Sasuke doesn't show up soon.

Naruto rubbed his chin, his brows furrowed in a contemplating sort of manner as he said "Mm... you're right... Kakashi-sensei's not here either" Sakura chewed on her bottom lid nervously as she gave the entrance one last glance "His match is starting soon"

Sakura caught a glimpse of her friend from the chunin exams on crutches and dressed in hospital robes and decided to go over and greet him "Lee-san, how are you feeling?" she asked. Upon hearing his name being called, Lee was immediately on alert of his surroundings "Sakura-san..." he said with mild surprise, however his expression immediately fell once again as he replied to her question "I'm afraid... not so well"

From the very first time Sakura had seen Lee, he had always been full of life and glowing with energy, and to watch him be so gloomy somewhat made her feel sympathetic for the boy. She looked at his injured arm and legs that were wrapped in layers of bandages and could tell to a certain degree that his injury was going to take a really long time to recover from, or maybe he wasn't even going to recover at all. Something stirred within Sakura as she feel a longing to do something for Lee.

"Cheer up, bushy brows! Get better soon!" Naruto gave him a firm thumbs up and Lee returned with a rather poor imitation of his usual, his hand was limp and his fingers were loose "Y-Yeah"

Their attention was turned back to the arena when they heard a familiar name being called "Is Uchiha Sasuke present" Genma called as he looked around the stands. Confused murmurs and incoherent chattered drifted around the stands. Naruto scratch his head with a finger "Why is Gaara doing down there? Wasn't it supposed to be Shino's turn to fight?" he said.

"My opponent just forfeited before we managed to start" Shino's voice came out of the blue from behind Naruto, causing the blond to jump in surprise. "Geez, don't just sneak up on people like that" he said. "That means it's Sasuke's turn now" said Sakura, grimly.

"Uchiha Sasuke, please step down into the arena" Genma tried again but to no avail as the opponent of the red headed suna-nin was still missing. "What are you doing... Sasuke" Sakura muttered to no one in particular, looking desperate as she prays for Genma to hold out from disqualifying Sasuke. "If that bastard doesn't show up soon, he's going to be disqualified" Naruto said, grabbing two fistfuls of his hair as he, too began to panic for his raven haired teammate.

"Not here huh?" said Genma to himself then glanced at the impatient looking Gaara then sighed "Uchiha Sasuke is-" however the lazy looking proctor was force to stop in mid-sentence as smoke erupted in the middle of the arena, causing a wave of surprised 'Oh's and chattering within the audience. The smoke cleared and revealed a laid back looking Kakashi and Sasuke, looking as ready as he's ever been. A wave of relief rushed throught Sakura and Naruto upon the arrival of their teammate.

"Ahah... looks like we made it" said Kakashi, a sheepish look on his face as Sasuke glared crossly at his teacher. "Don't give me that look, at least you aren't disqualified" Kakashi retorted. Sasuke "Just go" Sasuke said dismissively as he walked over to face his opponent. Kakashi leapt on to the railing but not before giving his student a pat on the back and a "Do your best"

Genma could feel the intensity of the two glaring genins and decided to start the match and get out of their way before they decided to suffocate him with their deadly auras. "Begin!"

Immediately, Sasuke leapt a few feet back as he watched Gaara's sand flow out of the gourd with cautious eyes. Gaara's expression had suddenly changed from neutral to a frantic pained expression as he lowered and clutched his head mumbling something incoherent to Sasuke to himself. "Please... don't get mad at me... I'm sorry for making you taste such filthy blood" the red haired suna-nin's voice was hoarse and somewhat strangled before his head snapped up and his bloodthirsty eyes landed on Sasuke. "But I promise you... this one will be worth it"

The sand had suddenly come to a dead stop and rained onto the ground as it's user straightened to face Sasuke fully once again. Sasuke's brows were knitted with confusion as he tried to figure out what was happening with his opponent before he decided to speak "What wrong? Not going to attack?" Sasuke said in a mocking tone before his person disappeared in a beeline directly towards Gaara "Then I will"

Sasuke's fist drew back in a punch as Gaara was a few feet away from him, as the Suna-nin raised his sand defenses towards his front, Sasuke vanished and reappeared behind him earning him a mildly surprisedly expression from Gaara _'He's fast... just like the other one'_ confident that his sand shield would make it in time to block off Sasuke's attack. Gaara spared a glance behind him only for him to catch the glimpse of Sasuke's punch before it connected with the side of his face and sending him stumbling forward, his shield of sand that didn't make it; raining back down to the ground.

Gaara's eyes shifted from mild shock to complete bewilderment as his whole body turned a dirty hazel color the cracks on his face crumbled and fall to the ground, revealing the real skin of the lower part of his left cheek and jaw. Sasuke smirked as he watched Gaara's shocked expression and feeling his confidence swell, though he knew he didn't deal any damage to his opponent but manage to land a physical hit on the person that was deemed 'Impossible' to touch on his first attempt had to leave a good impression on the judges.

Naruto and Sakura gaped at their teammate, they hadn't even see him move. How did he get his hand through the sand shield, it took Sakura awhile before she had come up with the conclusion that Sasuke had in fact landed the hit and retracted his hand before the sand shield was up, making it look like his hand fazed through Gaara's sand to punch the latter square in the face.

Gaara glared at him with a sick bloodlust, Sasuke could feel a mild chill running down his spine but nonetheless paid no attention to it as he summoned his speed back once again to challenge Gaara. Sasuke didn't stay at one spot for more than half a millisecond, he circled around Gaara, throwing hit in every opening he sees, however he found that his hits hadn't exactly landed on what he wanted. He found that landing a hit on Gaara's person had been harder than before.

The speed of his shield had increased exponentially however there were a few times he had managed to scatter the shield before it managed to completely harder. Sasuke made "Tch" sound with his tongue before he flipped back, creating a necessary distance for him to carry out his next attack. His directed his chakra into his feet and he took off, running circles around Gaara. He moved at a pace so quick, it became nearly impossible for Gaara or the audience to see him. And it didn't help that the dust he was riling up with each of his step served as a sort of smoke screen.

Sasuke watched as confusion washed through Gaara's features, his sand was obviously confused as to where it should be guarding. Without warning, he dove in where Gaara's sand was most unguarded. Gaara noticed and immediately brought his shield up to block Sasuke. However because his sand had been pretty much scattered and circled around him, Gaara hadn't been able to manifest his shield up to block any physical attacks. It was easily penetrated by Sasuke but there was a smirk and Sasuke disappeared. Gaara's attention returned to his front in time to see Sasuke land a sharp kick to his chest.

Kankuro stared at the fight in absolute horror, he had never seen someone throw Gaara around so easily and it was becoming evident that whoever Sasuke was, he did not want him as an opponent.

Gaara shot out of the circle of smoke and tumbled a few times before coming to a stop, Sasuke charged at Gaara, the latter had a weary look to his eyes but soon it firmed up and he formed a seal. The sand began to surround him like a ball, forming layer by layer. As it formed, Gaara was watching Sasuke with his left eye, glaring at him as the ball of sand formed around his eyes to the very last layer before the ball was completed. Regardless whether his shield was up or not, Sasuke didn't halt in his charge, he drew his fist back for the punch- then swung.

In the last second, the sphere appeared to be distorted for a moment before spikes emerged from it. Sasuke's eyes widened, he called back all the strength in his muscles to a halt, his sharingan flashed as he pulled his head back slight and allowed a spike to past.

There was an audible wave of gasps echoing throughout the arena and Sakura had covered her mouth with her hands in a muffled gasp, expressing worry for her teammate as she watched each and every one of the spikes shoot out, some of them nearly impaling her friend. Sasuke looked at one of the spikes that were dangerously close to his eye, his chest heaving and a mild touch of fear in his eyes.

Soon he became aware of the sharp pain that shot up his legs, he looked down and realized that one of the spikes had evidently stabbed into one of his leg. Sasuke jerked his body back and leaped back before flipping back all the way till his feet was planted on the wall that surrounded the arena, holding himself with his chakra.

The fact that Gaara went into a defensive state, told Sasuke that he was probably just stalling, he smirked. This was his chance, _looks like Kakashi's plan worked after all._ he formed a flurry of seals before clawing his hands downwards- or at least whichever was downwards for him. There was a brief pause before a cackling sound was heard and a bright violent ball of lightning lashed out in his hands.

Sasuke gripped his biceps with his free hand and with one firm step, he took off, speeding down the wall, completely cutting through the tiles with his speed. Sasuke's sharingan pinpointed the weakest spot on the sphere and he plunged his flickering hand into it "Chidori!" he shouted.

There was a thunderous sound of impact accompanied by the occasional 'Woo's and astonished gasps from the audience. Silence once again lingered in the stadium, a smug look flickered across Sasuke's features as he felt the warmth of human blood in his fingers. Labored breathing could be heard from within the shell of protection "What... is this?" Gaara's husky voice drifted to Sasuke's attention. "It smells like blood, it's wet" Gaara's voice was beginning to waver "I-It hurts, it-it's _my_ blood" Gaara's voice was caught in his throat, eyes frantically staring into the darkness. The barrier in which he thought would be the ultimate defense, the confidence of his safety when he was within it- was crushed.

His wail rang out within the arena, Genma was on edge as to call a match or not.

Sasuke's brows furrowed as he tried to withdraw his hand but found that his hand had been effectively stuck into the barrier of sand, perhaps his technique worked a little too well. Gaara's wail was beginning to make him edgy, if the red haired suna-nin decided to send out his spikes again. Sasuke would undoubtedly be impaled.

With another firm tug, Sasuke managed to unstuck his hand; stumbling back a few steps before flipping back to keep his distance and readying himself for anything that Gaara was about to throw at him. "Gaara!" Kankuro called from the arena before his eyes shot up to the VIP box in which his teacher was placed in, Baki gave him the signal, a giant snake had slammed its tail down on the wall behind Gaara, creating an opening in the arena. Kankuro pushed himself off the railing, about to go to Gaara before he bumped into his injured sister. Kankuro could tell that Temari was in no shape to carry out her mission, they had completely underestimated Haruno Sakura, however the determined look in her eyes told him not to object her. They nodded at each other before proceeding to their brother's aid.

A wave of exhaustion had suddenly hit Sakura, however she didn't miss the faint peculiar sensation that tickled the back of her head. Realization dawned upon her almost immediately as she pulled her fingers to form a seal "Kai!" Sakura called, effectively cutting off her chakra flow for a brief moment and cleansing her system of any foreign interference before she could tip over and collapse to the floor.

Sakura glanced down next to her and spotted her blond teammate snoring away on the ground with a trickle of drool running down the side of his lips. Sakura frowned then glanced down at Sasuke who was still in the arena, he seemed oblivious of the effects that seem to be rendering the audience unconscious. She watched as Temari swung her fan, blowing a gush of wind towards Sasuke and forcing him to retreat away from Gaara. "Sa-" Sakura was cut off before she could call the name of her teammate when an explosion occurred from the VIP seating of the Hokage and Kazekage. There was an eerie purple barrier around the seating, completely boxing the kages in.

Sakura turned her attention back to the arena in time to see Kankuro take off with Gaara and Temari jumping close behind. Her eyes widened as she felt a hostile intent coming from behind her, she crouched down to avoid having her head taken off by a katana before pulling out the red string kunai from her holster and lashing around, implanting the blade deep into the shinobi's gut.

She pulled the blade out of the man's bloody stomach before sliding her blade carefully across the man's throat, the man fell on his back with a thump. Sakura rid her weapon of blood before she holstered it, walking up to the man she had just slain and examined him and the mask he was wearing her brows furrowed when she recognized it as a Suna-ANBU's mask.

Her guard was immediately up when she noticed another presence, this time it spoke. "Don't move!" he shouted at her, crouching next to Naruto's head as he pointed the tip of his kunai at Naruto's throat. Sakura stiffened and her fist curled into balls, she needed to do something. There was a flash of white and the man before her was no longer.

Her eyes lit up as her teacher stood before her "Kakashi-sensei" she exclaimed before two more suna ANBU were thrown past behind him with a jounin with a familiar green jumpsuit. "Hah! That makes the 18th; this puts me in the lead, Kakashi" the man Sakura known as Gai declared loudly whilst pointing at her silver haired teacher. Kakashi decided not to reply to his fellow jounin's comment and instead only sparing him a glance as Gai landed on the floor next to him.

"Kakashi-sensei, what's going on?" Sakura asked, she had briefly wondered if this was part of the test but her suspicions were denied upon the serious looks jounins' faces. "The whole stadium has been affected by a genjutsu, I expected nothing less of you to be able to see through it" Kakashi said, his eyes became hard "Sunagakure has launched an attack on Konoha. This might be a lot to ask of, Sakura but I need you to wake Naruto and gather a team to pursue Gaara as Sasuke's backup" Kakashi stated.

Sakura sneaked a glance at the arena where she last saw Sasuke and realized that indeed disappeared from the battle ground, she looked back at Kakashi "Are you coming with us?" she asked. Kakashi looked somewhat distracted as he replied her "I'm afraid not; the village's defense is at its weakest now, they'll need every shinobi available to turn the tides"

Sakura gave a firm nod and as she was about to release Naruto from the illusionary word, she halted as Kakashi spoke "Sakura, this is an A-ranked mission. Failure is not an option, the fate of the village could depend on it"

Sakura felt slightly intimidated at the idea of having to defend something as large as a whole village, she wasn't used to that sort of pressure due to the fact that in Iwagakure, she only had to look out for herself. She had feared the option of failing simply because she was aware of the painful punishments that lay ahead of her when she did. She felt a soft breeze next to her and turned to her side, looking up to meet the eyes of Itachi. "Take care of that foolish little brother of mine" he said and disappeared, not giving Sakura a chance to reply.

She had to put her insecurities aside, right now she needed to focus. She formed a seal with her right hand before tapping She formed a seal with her right hand before tapping on Naruto's neck "Kai!" There was a pregnant pause before Naruto began to stir "Naruto" Sakura called. Naruto rolled over to sleep on his side "Mm..."

Sakura shook his arm "Naruto, get up" she tried again. "5 more minutes..." he groaned. Sakura inhaled deeply and pulled Naruto by the collar, forcing him to sit up. Her blond haired teammate's eyes shot open, alert an awake as they met with the deep green eyes of Sakura. "Naruto, I need you to be serious with me here" she told him. Usually, she didn't mind Naruto's incompetence or how he likes play the fool but she couldn't afford to waste another second when so many lives rested in her hands- including Sasuke's.

Naruto could do nothing but nod "Go and wake Shikamaru-san up, he's already dispelled the genjutsu, meet me down at the arena" she said. Naruto gave another nod before they parted ways. Sakura ran through the stands as she scanned through the crowd's chakra for a particular one she skidded to a stop before she leaped up to second highest row of seating, landing neatly on the gap between the seat as she formed a seal and tapped on the brown haired boy's neck and his hound companion.

Kiba screwed his eyes tightly shut before opening them "What's... going on?" he mumbled rather sleepily and Akamaru gave a little whine. "Kiba-kun, Akamaru. I need your help on something" she said. The owner and dog looked unsurely at each other before Kiba replied "Erm... sure. What's up?" he asked. "I'll explain later" Sakura replied briefly before taking Kiba by the arm and pulled them with her as she leaped from the stands with Akamaru clinging desperately on Kiba's shoulder.

Sakura arrived back at the point where she told Naruto to meet her, indeed her blond teammate had done exactly as she had told him and retrieved a rather reluctant looking Shikamaru. "And? You better have a good reason to drag me into this" Shikamaru stated grumpily.

"We need to go and help Sasuke take down Gaara's team" Sakura turned to Kiba, apparently having no intention to let Shikamaru protest "Kiba-kun, can you catch Sasuke's scent" Sakura asked. Kiba and Akamaru lifted their heads and sniffed at the air. "I got it" he replied shortly. "Can you trace it?"

Kiba scoffed "Don't underestimate an Inuzuka's nose. This way!"

They followed, but in between Shikamaru realized that they were being followed and offered to stay behind to stall them alone despite being aware that his opponents greatly outnumber him. "Just go, the troublesome ones are ahead" was all he said.

Soon after they've split up with Shikamaru, they came face to face with Temari who had most probably been left behind to stall them "Where's Sasuke" Naruto demanded. A look of shock flashed across Temari's face as she glanced over her shoulder "Gaara, Kankuro...!" she exclaimed as she position herself to leap, however a kunai that flew dangerously close to her face told her to reconsider. "Look this way" Kiba snarled excitedly. Kiba had been quick to accept taking her on with confidence ringing in his voice as he was aware of the damage Temari has suffered from her last fight with Sakura. "Go straight on and you'll meet Sasuke, they aren't traveling very fast" Kiba stated. Sakura and Naruto nodded "Thanks" before they took off.

Sasuke was close, he had kept a safe distance behind them and cleverly dodged Temari's stall before chasing them down in full speed. Kankuro's eyes widened as he turned his body slightly to counter the kunais that came at them out of nowhere. Sasuke shot out from the leaves and went after Gaara, gripping a kunai in his hands. One of Kankuro's puppets intercepted, forcing Sasuke to retreat despite the sloppy movements of the puppet as Kankuro was forced to control his puppet with only one of his hands.

"Kankuro" Gaara started out huskily "let me go" he said. However Kankuro protested "You can barely stand" Gaara was not pleased at being belittled; he lifted his head slightly to glare at Kankuro with his sea foam eyes. Fear was immediately pulled to the surface from Kankuro and he found himself doing as Gaara said. Sasuke bent his knees, positioning himself to leap off and pursue Gaara however he was forced to retreat to another branch when Kankuro's puppet shot darts from its finger tips. Sasuke didn't miss the purplish tint that spread in the bark of the tree as the darts made contact. _Poison_.

Sasuke leapt from a branch to avoid another flurry of darts, glaring his frustration at Kankuro upon catching the retreating figure of his red-headed target. Desperate to rid himself off Kankuro and go after his target, Sasuke decided to act rashly. However it soon proved to be harder than he thought it'd be when Kankuro's didn't even give him enough room to escape, he didn't want to waste any of chakra on his puppets but Kankuro wasn't making it easy on him. It won't be long before he would be forced to pull something out to defend himself.

And then it came, the knife that thrusted dangerously close to his eye before he tiled his head at the last moment, the knife came so close to face that it left a mark on his skin. Sasuke realized too late that there was another puppet behind him. This one was rounder than the one that had attack him, and he could very much guess what was the hole in its stomach was for, if he gets caught in that, he wasn't going to be leaving his forest in one piece- literally. However his route of escape had been blocked by Kankuro's offense puppet, Karasu. He would just have to break Kuroari from the inside. But before he had the chance to fall in, the puppets stopped moving altogether.

"Sasuke!" he heard a voice call, he smirked.

Sasuke leapt off from the puppet master's trap and landed on a higher branch, watching as his teammates arrived at the scene. Kankuro's fingers twitched but his puppets refused to move. "What the hell's going on" Kankuro snapped impatiently. He heard the rustling of leaves before he released his chakra strings to dodge a kunai from nowhere. Team Kakashi seemed surprised as it was none of them that threw that kunai. _Who else came with us?_

The leaves on a feeble branch rustled and a young man with sunglasses joined the fray. "Shino!" Naruto announced loudly.

The bug manipulator nodded silently at Sakura and Naruto upon the mention of his name. "I'll fight him, you should chase Gaara" Shino sounded like his monotonous self, except there was an air of depression that swept Sakura's spine when she heard his voice. Was he… sulking? The thought was out of her head as fast as it came in. "Thanks, Shino-san" she said before leaping off with her teammates.

Kankuro curled on of his fingers and a dart shot out of Karasu's finger as a final attempt to stop Sasuke, however it never made it as a wall of insects assembled and intervened the dart.

It wasn't hard to track Gaara; all they had to do was follow the trail of blood left on the trees, it wasn't long before Gaara's massive chakra came within Sakura's sensing range. A sudden gasp escaped Sakura's lips, her eyes shot to look at Sasuke frantically before pumping extra chakra into her next step, shooting forward towards Sasuke and shoving him roughly out of the way.

Alarmed by the sudden force that came from behind him, his brain was already stirring up a few counterattacks he could pull however any further offense did not arrive, and instead he felt a sudden force of wind that blew past behind him. He landed nimbly on a branch despite being shoved forward, it was then that he heard the alerted voice of his blonde teammate. "Sakura-chan!"

Sasuke's eyes darted around the forest and finally they landed on the struggling Sakura that had been pinned to the tree by a blanket of sand. Sakura winced at the firmness of the sand, not allowing any room for her to even move a limb. Sasuke switched his foot and shot right at Gaara as Naruto leapt to Sakura to see if he can get her out of the sand.

Gaara had his side facing Sasuke but as he drew closer, it became evident that the suna-nin had half his body engulfed in a thick layer of sand build like a creature of ears and weird markings throughout the body of sand. Sasuke calculated punch didn't end well when the next thing he knew was the painful crunch of his ribs and the force of the wind on his back. Gaara had hit him with a transformed hand.

Sasuke pulled back on his lower half and flipped backwards to land against the side of a branch, he snuck a glance at Naruto and Sakura only to find that the dobe had yet to free Sakura. There was no choice, he was on his own for now. Summoning a Fuuma Shuriken, he hurled himself back at Gaara; this time he was ready for his oversized sand hand. The red head pulled his arm over to block Sasuke. A spark ran through Sasuke's huge shuriken before he flung it at Gaara. "Fuuma Shuriken!"

The spinning projectile emitted a static like glow before it was embedded onto the sand arm of Gaara however it didn't stop spinning and it wasn't long before it had completely severed the sand arm and stabbed deeply into Gaara's unharmed shoulder.

_Roar._

Sakura the grip around her loosen before she felt weightless and plummeted to the root of the tree with Naruto releasing his stand on the tree and going after her. Sakura landed swiftly on her feet and looked up to see the struggling suna-nin. She noticed that Sasuke had taken safety precautions and stood on a branch with a good distance between him and the boy that was being engulfed by sand.

"W-What's happening to him" Naruto said. Sakura shook her head "I don't know, but whatever he's becoming- Sasuke's going to need help" Sakura muttered.

**Next Chapter **

"_Who_ are you?"

"You awake?"

"To go so far for others, how foolish"

"Kankuro, Temari. I'm sorry"

"Take her"

* * *

**Once again, I apologize for the lack of romance. Please do review! **

**Question: **

**Minato or Kakashi? **

**I'm only asking this out of curiosity, it isn't going to change the course of the fic, don't worry. **


	7. Casualties

**Here you go! Though it took a week for me to upload, I tried! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, unfortunately.**

* * *

**Casualties**

A cry of pain sounded from the trees and rang in Sakura's ears. Immediate her whole body was on alert and she found herself instinctively crying out for her raven haired teammate "Sasuke!" she heard her voice blend with Naruto's. She shot up the trees and landed next to his crumpled form, his hand clutching the side of his neck with Naruto joining her on the branch shortly.

Sakura gripped his biceps as she tried to make him look at her "Sasuke, Sasuke. Look at me" she told him. Sasuke panted as he lifted his head to meet Sakura's gaze with tired eyes, his vision was blurry but he could vaguely make out the concern evident on his teammate's face.

Another wave of pain had hit him and he collapsed his head onto Sakura's shoulder before another pained yelp was ripped from his throat. Naruto looked worriedly at Sasuke then his eyes moved to Sakura "What's wrong with him, Sakura-chan" he asked his teammate but Sakura bit her lips, her attention focused solely on the Uchiha before her. Black marks began to coat Sasuke's skin and Sakura could only watch as his body writhed in pain.

A sudden force slammed down onto the branch, snapping it off the tree and blowing the teammates apart. Sakura tumbled and skid across the ground just a few feet away from Sasuke and Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

She pushed herself up, noticing that menacing feel of the chakra that had landed in front of her and the towering figure casting a shadow over her. She had no time to react before all she felt was pain and the sound of snapping trees as she shot through the forest and even further away from her teammates. Sasuke, having witnessed everything was hit with a new determination and pushed himself to get up. "Sakura…" he said, forcefully. His arms and shoulders were trembling as he glared furiously at Gaara who had now been completely engulfed in sand and taking the shape of a mean looking creature with ears.

The beast form Gaara lifted his arm, about swipe him through the forest like what he did with Sakura, however his blonde teammate intercepted by tackling the beast of sand before any more pain could be bestowed on him and he was thankful for that; not that he'd ever admit it to Naruto. The blonde had no engulfed himself in red chakra that he had never seen before, but what was familiar to him was the fact that Naruto's eyes had turned read and his iris was slit.

The pain subsided and was soon to be overridden with anger as he was reminded of what Gaara had done to Sakura. Secretly praying for his teammate to be alright, he hurled himself at Gaara, taking no notice to the pain ringing in every cell of his body.

Naruto and Gaara were taking each other by the hands, pushing against one another before Sasuke landed a sharp kick to Gaara's side, because of thick layer of sand, Sasuke was sure he didn't do much damage to the main person however the force was enough to knock him off his feet and send him flying in the other direction.

The pain was still ringing in his cells but at the same time he felt a surge of energy, a satisfying fill of power had taken over his body. Yes, with this he felt like he could overcome anything. _Anything at all._

_A soft sound of wind reached her ears and she felt her unconsciousness subsiding, she expected the pain to be shooting up her body soon but none came. Her eyes fluttered open and she felt a presence, enemy or friend? She didn't know but she wasn't about to find out the hard way, bolting upright and launching herself away from the presence she took the time to study the person that sat cross-legged next to the place where she laid. _

_A woman, she wasn't anyone she had ever met before but Sakura could feel her uneasiness melting away however she chose not to show it and continued to look at the woman with untrusting eyes. The woman smiled. Sakura could feel her mask crumbling, her posture straightening but she didn't move from her distanced spot. "Come sit by me, Sakura" the woman told her gently and Sakura could do nothing but comply. _

_It was then that Sakura noticed that she wasn't in the forest with her teammates, in fact it didn't look like anywhere near the battle, everywhere she looked she was greeted by the same white sheet; there was no floor, no sky, just white- she must be dead. _

_The woman chuckled all of the sudden and Sakura looked at her curiously. "My dear, you're still very much alive. Just unconscious" she said. Sakura opened her mouth to say something but before she could do so, the woman gave her a painful smile as if pleading her not to ask that question. Sakura kept quiet. "In time, you will know who I am. But now, do you want to listen to an old woman's story?" she asked. _

"_Oh, but I must be returning to my-" the woman cut her off. _

"_They can handle a few minutes without you, I'm sure" _

_Sakura looked reluctant but nonetheless she complied. "Many, many years ago. There was a clan that specialized in chakra control, because of this gift; they were well known throughout the nations. This was before villages had been established. Times were changing and clans were coming together to make shinobi villages that we know today. This clan remained impassive to this new era and took a neutral stance in the wars that were riled up between clans and villages. The clan had a secret, not only do they have the power to control their chakra flawlessly but they had the power to unlock all the secrets of chakra." _

_Sakura stiffened all the secrets of chakra? Didn't that mean-_

"_Yes, they could use all five elements of chakra and they have proven themselves to be strong sensory types. It wasn't long before their secret had been exposed and they could no longer uphold their neutral stance. They were cornered. However, they waited too long. In order to prevent the clan from falling into their enemies' hands, the shinobi villages came to an agreement that the clan had to be destroyed- completely."_

"_Knowing that their fate had been seal, a woman of the clan fled their humble village with her unborn and isolated herself from the world. It wasn't long before her child was brought to this world, immediately she placed a strong seal upon the baby girl and she raised the girl silently and hidden from the eyes of cruel shinobi world, it wasn't before the peace had been restored to the nations that one of her descendents had fallen in love with a man that bore the symbol of Konoha, That was my mother" the woman finished and looked at Sakura. _

_Sakura's brows furrowed, why was this woman telling her all this? Was it somehow connected to her? Once again, the woman seemed to have been able to read her mind and answered her "In due time, everything will make sense. Now, I must return you to your teammates" she said, her gentle voice faded as did her form but not before Sakura felt pair of faded fingers touch her forehead lightly. "Kaiho" she whispered. _

_Sakura gasped, like tight bandages had been unwrapped, her heart pumped with adrenaline before she jerked back to wakefulness. _

Immediately she was greeted by the sound of a distressed cry of her teammate. "Naruto…!" Sakura gasped. She pushed off a branch that laid on her and got on her feet, brushing off the wave of nausea that hit her. She took a step forward and she heard the sound of something snapping.

Sasuke picked himself from the ground, his teeth gritted as he bit back another yelp of pain. He looked to the side and watched as Naruto did the same thing, the red chakra no longer surrounded him as he got up. _This is bad. _

Gaara had a sudden power up and they could but watch as their opponent morphed into a supersized raccoon of sand. Once the transformation was complete, the sand beast was twice as tall as the trees. It let out an ear piercing roar that shook the ground, beside him Sasuke could hear Naruto mutter a string of curses. _What were they going to do now? _

"Sasuke! Naruto!"

Their heads immediately snapped around at the sound of her voice, relief rushed through their features at the sight of their teammate, alive and well as she ran towards them. Sakura had to force her body to stop running before he overshot her teammates, the adrenaline was still pumping in her blood and she was aching for some action. "I have a plan" she panted, not from fatigue but from the overflowing chakra that filled her body.

"A-Are you okay? Sakura-chan" Naruto asked, taking notice of her plethora of chakra and expressing his concern for her. "Never better" Sakura said, but there was something wild that stirred within the glint of her eyes that neither Sasuke nor Naruto had seen before but then again, they hadn't known her for long.

They were pulled back to the situation at hand when the Shukaku's tail had missed them, but even so, the destructive power of it made a dent line in the middle of the forest. "Lend me your ears" she told her teammates.

…

The whole village's attention was turned to the rampaging tailed beast, many worried faces surfaced and the village began to lose hope. _Can we really win against that? I don't want to die yet. Where's the Hokage-sama! _Itachi could hear them, the desperate thoughts of pleading shinobi just like during the Shinobi war, a time he wished had never been. A place her never wished to visit again. _Can you pull through? Sasuke._

…

Miraculously, Naruto had been able to summon the chief toad, Gamabunta into the fray with the help of an extra push of chakra from the Kyuubi. "You'd better have a good reason for summoning me, kid" the toad said in his gravelly voice.

"Oyabun! We need your help!" Naruto cried out from onto of Gamabunta's head. It was then that the toad chief came to notice the presence of the bijuu before him.

"The One-tailed Shukaku… huh" he said before a wide smirk split his already wide lips. "I've faced way too many Bijuus in one lifetime"

"Sit tight, kid" Gamabunta ordered. Naruto nodded in reply.

The Shukaku brought its tail around to whip down on the toad summon, however before Naruto could be crushed, the toad brought his hand up to block the tail before taking it below his arm and giving a sharp tug. The shukaku struggled for a bit and then decided to lunge itself at Gamabunta, slashing its claws at the latter.

Gamabunta leapt into the air, forming seals with his webbed fingers "Suiton: Teppodama (Water Release: Gunshot)" The toad chief's chest swell before an enormous water balls was hurled out through his mouth, successfully landing a hit onto of the target and drenching the shukaku causing the sand to darken. The shukaku was now too heavy to move nearly as fast as before. "Yes!" Naruto cheered victoriously.

From the shukaku, they could see Gaara surfaced onto of its head. Gamabunta's brows furrowed "Kid, if you have some sort of plan then you better bring it out fast before that kid"-

"Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu (Feigning Sleep Technique)"

"Shoot"

The loud screeching roar of the shukaku once again shook the trees. Naruto covered his ears and winced "Geez, the guy just can't shut up for a minute"

Naruto spotted Sakura and Sasuke leaping from the tops of the trees and onto the Shukaku, scaling the enormous beast with chakra charged feet and determination to take out Gaara. However it wasn't after a few steps that their feet came to an abrupt halt. Sakura's upper body jerked forward and she brought her palms in front of her to stop herself from planting her face onto the sand.

She glanced back at Sasuke who, too, had his feet stuck in the sand. "Naruto!" She called out "You have to take him out!" she shouted at her teammate.

Aware of his teammate's struggle, Naruto felt his ego swell. It was up to him now, they had no choice but to rely on him and he wasn't about to let them down. "Hey, Chief! Can you get me close enough to Gaara?" Naruto said.

"Sure, but you'll need to transform me into something with claws" Gamabunta replied

"With claws eh? Alright! Leave it to me!" Naruto declared proudly as he thumped his chest with his fist, he lowered himself onto the toad's head and placed his palms down. "Henge!"

Gamabunta launched himself at the Shukaku, sinking its newly gained claws into its torso. When the smoke cleared, the nine-tailed fox was in the place of Gamabunta. "Really? Of all the things, you turn me into this hateful creature?" Gamabunta complained.

"It was the first thing that came to my mind!" Naruto said, defensively. He leapt off Gamabuntas' head and landed a few feet away from Gaara but before he could land a punch on the latter, he realized that he was sinking at an extremely fast rate and by the time his brain told him to struggle, both his arms had been swallowed by the sand. _Dammit, he's so close…!_

Sakura let out an agonized scream as she became aware of the bone-crushing pain that shot up her body. Sasuke, too, felt it but refused let it get the best of him and instead chose to worry over his teammate in pain. It reminded him that she was much frailer than them and that only served worsen his worries. "Sasuke" Sakura croaked out painfully and immediately catching his attention. Both of them already had sand up to their necks and she found it particularly painful to speak.

"Naruto!" Sakura called out to her other teammate. Naruto perked up from his struggling to listen to Sakura.

"Exhaust your chakra! All of it!" she yelled before her head had been dipped down into the sand.

There was a moment of silence as the Shukaku let out a throaty laugh at its victory. Gamabunta had reverted back to his normal form before his summon had ceased. Konoha watched as the Shukaku turned to them. A sudden wave of grieve wash over Kakashi as he realized that he had sent his team to their death.

It wasn't long before the tailed beast came to a complete standstill. There was something wrong within him, a burst of chakra that wasn't his. The first beam of chakra that shot out of the Shukaku was red, the chakra shot straight up into the sky and made a hole in the clouds. The second chakra was an ominous color of black and purple, looking as if a mere touch could dissolve your flesh. The Shukaku let out an agonized roar as it struggled to locate the source of the destruction of its power.

"GET IT OUT! GET IT OUT!"

With the last burst of green chakra, the Shukaku began to wane and the sand that held the beast together began to crumble. Taking the loose sand to their advantage, Naruto shot out of the sand and head-butted Gaara to consciousness. The unexpected awakening had cause an extreme unstable tilt in the bijuu's chakra and causing a sudden explosion. Everything was once again, blank white, for Sakura.

…

A ringing in his ears was the first thing he heard, pain throbbing throughout his body was the first thing he felt- a blur of pink was the first thing he saw.

She was sitting on a rock that was embedded in the ground with her back facing him. Her posture was strict, shoulders square and her back was proudly arched. With the slightest twitch of his muscle, she turned to look at him. "You awake?" she asked him but silently confirmed it herself when she met his sea-foam green eyes.

"_Who_ are you?" Gaara asked her in an apathetic tone.

"Haruno Sakura"

She smiled at him, earning a troubled gaze from him. How could she smile when he had tried to kill her? "Why do you do that" he asked her.

Sakura tilted her head slightly in question "Do what?"

"Smile"

"Am I not supposed to?"

"I tried to kill you-"

"I'm not dead yet"

"- and your teammates"

Sakura paused "For that, I'll never forgive you." For the first time, he met her eyes. He noticed that they were somewhat blazing in her own shade of green and he could still feel an active wave of chakra that lingered around her. She had her guard up, looks like she wasn't as naïve as he had thought she was.

"Kill me" he told her, turning his head away from her to look up at the sky.

"No"

Angered, Gaara wondered how a girl like her had managed to become a shinobi "Just kill me!" he snapped.

"Don't want to"

Gaara looked helpless, his eyes squinted to a remorsefully look. He had failed his mission, he was nothing but a defective shinobi scum. He didn't want to continue living.

"You should treasure yourself more" she told him.

Annoyed that she would dare tell him what to do, he threatened her "I'll kill you and your teammates"

"I won't let you" she retorted, although the lightness of her tone was still there, however he could tell that she was dead serious.

It came to his attention that the conscious girl he was talking to was holding out with her sheer willpower. He scoffed "To go so far for others, how foolish" he said.

Sakura laughed nervously but he didn't miss the wavering tone of fatigue in her voice as she said "That may be so, but I'd never be able to forgive myself if I let anything happen to them when I could've prevent it" it was as if she was speaking more to herself than him.

Her head snapped up at the two approaching presence. "Gaara!" the red-haired suna-nin's looked surprised to be hearing the voices of his two siblings. They came for him, even after how he had always treated them. They hoisted him up to his feet with his arms slump over their shoulders and without another word, they leapt off with him.

"Kankuro, Temari." Gaara said their names before he could stop them. He paused for awhile when he felt their attention on him "I'm sorry"

Shocked was an understatement to the reaction of his two elder siblings, never in their life had they even dreamed of having their brother apologizing to them. But it was a good kind of shock, it makes them wonder just what had their brother been talking about with the pink-haired kunoichi.

…

Sakura felt their chakras expand beyond her range before she let out the breath that she had unconsciously been holding and relief rushed through her when she felt her teammate's chakra growing active. Sasuke pushed himself to sit up right, rubbing his sorehead before realizing that his body was just as sore. His attention turned to his pink-haired teammate that seemed be standing stiffly and staring off into space.

"I feel sore all over" Naruto groaned.

Sasuke chose to ignore his teammate's complains and walked over to Sakura. "Sakura?" he said, approaching her slowly before coming to stand next to her. "Sasuke" she acknowledged his presence. Confused at her lack of response, Sasuke looked at her, only letting a small hint of his concern show in his usual apathetic eyes. "Are you okay?" he asked her before he could stop himself. His noticed that her eyes weren't her usual clear emerald shade but instead, they were a gradient of green that made her eyes look like they were blazing green.

"I'm sorry, I can't… hold out any long-" her voice had suddenly sounded hoarse, her body began to sway. Sasuke felt her weight on his side, the colors of her eyes had suddenly turned dull and her eyes drifted close before her body began completely limp. Sasuke flipped his body to face her and managed hold up her weight prior her fall.

"Sakura-chan" Naruto exclaimed, alarmed by her sudden fall to unconsciousness.

Sasuke felt something trickling down his arm and realized by the stench of it; it was blood. But it wasn't his own, his eyes traveled down to Sakura's abdomen where a deep stab wound was seen just under her right ribcage. His worry began to make the best of him and despite his obvious fatigue, he lifted his teammate into his arm without asking for the help of Naruto. A sudden possessiveness had taken over him and he didn't trust Sakura in the hands of another until he was sure she'd be in the right hands.

…

With the Suna-nin's forces pulled back and Orochimaru, fled. Konoha was left with the aftermath to clean up debris of the battle. Kakashi had been keeping an eye out for his students, he was aware of the fact that Kiba and Shikamaru had returned safely and Shino had, too, be brought back, albeit in a stretcher. He purposely hung around the hole in the arena, claiming to be helping out with the cleanup around the area.

And then he spotted them, albeit worn and beaten up but they were in one piece. Naruto offered him his usual cheeky grin and he knew immediately, that they were going to be okay. His eyes narrowed in on Sakura who was laying limp in Sasuke's arms as the latter approached him. Sasuke didn't look up to meet his gaze but instead he mumbled something.

"Take her"

He handed Sakura, reluctantly, over to his silver-haired teacher who, at once, complied before watching his student fall unconscious at his feet, finally giving in to the ruling pain. "Sasuke…!" Kakashi gasped, he felt a hand on his shoulder, he looked to the side to see Naruto with his side facing him.

"Take care of Sakura-chan… Kakashi-sensei" Naruto's words trailed off and Kakashi could but watch as his other student came collapsing down as well. "Naruto…!" Kakashi turned and frantically called for a medical group.

…

It had taken nearly a day for team Kakashi to regain their consciousness and it wasn't surprising that Naruto had been the first one to wake and that ultimately led to the waking of his prodigal teammate and Sasuke was _not _a morning person and Naruto found that out the hard way. The Uchiha was this close to shoving his blonde teammate out the window before they heard the door slide open, revealing a rather astonished looking nurse with a basin of water in her hands.

Sasuke released the back of Naruto's hospital wear and attempted to stuff his hands in his pockets like he usually does but grumpily settled to let them limp at his sides when he found that he, too, was in the hospital wear and it had no pockets. "Uchiha-sama, Uzumaki-sama. You shouldn't be out of bed just yet, I will go call for a doctor so please return to your beds" the nurse set down the basin on a nearby table and bowed curtly before exiting out the door.

Once again, they were alone.

Naruto shot Sasuke an unsatisfied glare as the Uchiha dismissed it and began moving towards his bed; not that he was obeying the nurse's orders, he doesn't like following orders, he was beginning to feel slightly lightheaded and he'd rather die that have to let Naruto know. He'd never be able to hear the end of it.

"Eh? Where's Sakura-chan" Naruto asked all of the sudden, noticing the lack of their third teammate's presence. Sasuke barely managed to stop himself from freezing in one of his steps upon this news. Indeed, Sakura was not present in their room. He suddenly felt an irritation surfacing, maybe he shouldn't have handed Sakura to Kakashi, maybe it would've been better if he'd forced himself to stay conscious to get her to the hospital and made sure that she was going to be okay before he passed out.

Because of this, he knew neither of Sakura's condition nor where she was.

Wait, why was he worrying so much about a girl? He wasn't being himself, he needed to stop these thoughts of her.

Sasuke's face remained blank as he sat down on his bed, feeling content that his world had stabilized "Who knows" he replied Naruto. Naruto frowned, not satisfied with his reaction. The blonde grabbed his teammate by the back of his shirt and dragged him towards the door.

"We're going to look for her!" he declared not bothering to ask the Uchiha for his consent.

Moments later, Sasuke walked down the hospital corridors with Naruto and newfound lump on the head, courtesy of Sasuke. "This is stupid, how do you expect to find her in this many rooms" Sasuke grumbled.

Naruto, upon hearing his teammate's voice, subconsciously lifted his hand up to touch his throbbing lump as he replied "Well, we'll just check all of the rooms"

Having said that, the blonde leapt at a random door and opened it roughly "Sakura-chan?" he called, only to be greeted by an empty room. He slammed it close and dove for another door.

"Sakura-chan?" he tried again.

The old man on the bed turned his head in and shot him a quizzical look. "Ah, my bad" Naruto apologized before slamming the door shut.

The old man tutted and continued to look out the window "Kids these days"

"Sakura-chan!" "Sakura-chaaaan?" "Saaakuraaa-chaaan?" "SAKURA- gaah!"

Sasuke silently thanked the old lady with her cane ready at her door, immediately giving the loudmouth a piece of her mind when Naruto so rudely slammed open her door.

Now Naruto had two lumps.

Sasuke held back from snorting at his ridiculous appearance and igniting Naruto's will to be loud again. And thanks to Naruto's quietness, Sasuke was able to pick up a conversation from behind a poorly closed door.

His footsteps came to an abrupt halt when he recognized that voice, _her_ voice. He traced it back a few rooms and spotted the door that hadn't been closed completely and the cause of the leakage of sound.

"Does this hurt?"

"No"

"How about this"

"No"

"Okay, no signs of fracture. Alright Haruno-san, I'm going to check your reflexes, just relax"

"Okay"

She watched in fascination as the doctor moved about the room, picking out the tools he needed for her next examination before she noticed the familiar pair of chakra that stood outside her door. "Sasuke! Naruto!" she cried out, delightedly.

Before either Naruto or Sasuke could open the door to greet their teammate, someone had opened it for them. The pair looked over to their shoulder to see a very crossed looking nurse with a hand on her hip and the other on the door. She cleared her throat loudly and Naruto and Sasuke straightened from their sneaky crouched position.

She stepped into the room; ignoring them as she spoke to the doctor "Sensei, I believe there are two more patients that await their examination" she cast Naruto and Sasuke a sideways glance to indicate that they were the subject of her topic. The two boys stepped meekly into Sakura's ward, instantly the room was filled with Naruto's loud greeting and chatter.

"Alright, since all three of you are present then it will save me the trouble of changing locations for your examinations. Seat yourselves down; I'll be done with your teammate in a moment" the doctor instructed and they complied.

…

The examination was brief and the doctor concluded that they were all healthy enough to be discharged later that afternoon. The nurse had suggested that the guys return to their room but Naruto's blatant rejection and unrestricted expression of his dislike towards that idea ended up with a rolling of eyes from the nurse before she left them alone.

There was a pause of silence before they heard a snickering from Naruto's side; Sasuke raised an eyebrow at him as Sakura turned around to look at her teammate, looking concerned. "Is there something wrong, Naruto?" Sakura asked.

Naruto lifted his head and flashed her wide grin, showing his pearly white teeth with canines sharper than a normal person's "We really did it, didn't we" he said.

Sakura's head tilted slightly in question.

"We totally beat Gaara!" Naruto exclaimed loudly.

After the mention of the topic, Sasuke and Sakura could help but let themselves be affected Naruto's contagious swell of satisfaction in their chests. Yes, they beat him fair and square and they did it as a team. Speaking of teams, it was at that moment when their silver-headed jounin sensei decided to pop in.

"And for your victory, I'm proud call you my team"

Three heads snapped towards the window where their sensei was carefully leaning on. "Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto announced.

"Yo"

"Kakashi-sensei, what happened to the chuunin exams?" Sakura asked.

"Due to the invasion, all genin were disqualified"

The three of them looked slightly crestfallen but Naruto rebounded quickly "There's always the next exam, it's going to be a piece of cake" Naruto thumped his chest proudly. Sasuke smirked and Sakura felt her spirits lifting. He was right, all they had to do was take it again and thanks to the invasion, she was able to find out something more of herself, now she knew that she was probably a descendant of an extinct bloodline that the woman told her, A mere disqualification was a small price to pay, albeit she would have to look up on her 'gift' when she had the time though.

"How is a condition of the village?" Sakura asked.

"Well, several buildings were destroyed from the summons but nothing unfixable and there were… casualties" Kakashi's words trailed off as if he was looking for the right word, but his little pause aroused some concerned suspicion from his team.

"Were there many? The casualties, that is" Sakura asked, a part of her felt like she didn't want to know but she was going to have to find out eventually.

"In war, casualties are inevitable but we've managed to minimize that but-" Kakashi stopped abruptly, causing his students to sit on the edge of their seats, gazing up at him expectantly.

"The Hokage is dead"

Silence rang loudly in their ears and a sudden wave of coldness engulfed the room's atmosphere. _The Hokage… is dead?_

"How can he be dead!? He's the Hokage! He's the strongest shinobi in the village! He can't be dead!" Naruto shouted with a mixture of fury and frustrated grief. _He can't be dead. He can't be. I was going to defeat him one day, I was going to rip that title off of him. _

Kakashi's eyes looked down in remorse "They had him cornered, and age is every shinobi's fall. The Sandaime was at the end of his career, he defended the village to the very end and because of him, Orochimaru's ability to use jutsu has been seal."

"Orochimaru…!?" Sasuke said, alarmed.

The sudden outburst from Sasuke caused all the attention in the room to turn to him, because rarely do Sasuke voice his thoughts. "Yes, it turned out that Orochimaru manipulated Sunagakure to invade Konoha by imposing as the Kazekage, the real one is dead" Kakashi answered, he glanced at his team and judging by the hard looks on their faces, they were probably thinking along the lines of-

"There was nothing you could've done with your encounter with him in the forest, he is one of the legendary Sannin after all, so don't blame yourselves"

Naruto straightened "Legendary… sannin?" he rubbed his chin thoughtfully "Now where have I heard that before" his eyes squinted in thought.

"So what are we going to do without a Hokage" Sakura said, her voice sounding a little hoarse.

"The council wants to appoint Jiraiya-sama as the next Hokage but-"

"AH! That ero-sennin!" Naruto shouted.

Kakashi choked and he staggered "E-Ero-sennin?" he said in disbelief. Jiraiya was one of the most powerful and respectable shinobi that Konoha has ever produced and Naruto had just blatantly voiced his opinions of the man with the nickname 'Ero-sennin.' Though, that very same man is the author of the Icha Icha Paradise. Guess it made sense.

"I'm surprised you've heard of him, Naruto"

"Well, he sorta trained me for the fourth round. But why is _he_ the new Hokage!"

"The council concluded that he was the most suited candidate for the task, however he doesn't wish to succeed the Sandaime"

"Then what are we going to do?" Sakura voiced her concern for the village.

Kakashi glanced out the window "There is still one other person capable for the task, the last of the Sannin. Tsunade-hime"

"Hime? Is she really a princess?" Sakura wondered out loud.

"In a way, yeah, she's the granddaughter of the Konoha first Hokage. Hence the nickname"

Sakura had suddenly stiffened and glanced at the door that mysteriously been left open by a mere crack "Show yourself" she stated in a cold tone.

There was a moment of amused laughter "Looks like I've been found" the source of the laughter stepped into the room.

"Ero-sennin!" Naruto introduced him before the white haired man could do so himself.

Jiraiya twitched. "You're horrible, Naruto. Calling me that in front of a lady" Jiraiya flashed a glance at Sakura. Sasuke found himself narrowing his eyes at the Hokage candidate but confused as to why he had suddenly felt an irritation to Jiraiya.

"You're a pervert! Don't come any closer to Sakura-chan!" Naruto growled, boldly pointing his finger at Jiraiya who smiled meekly and raised his hands in surrender then laughed before his eyes fell into a look of seriousness that didn't seem to match his face.

"By the way, Naruto. Pack your bags for a mission, we're leaving tomorrow" Jiraiya said all of the sudden. The three genin looked at him questionably.

"What for? Are we going somewhere? Where are we going?" Naruto blurted out his question, looking more and more anxious with each one. Jiraiya smirked at his enthusiasm "We're going to look for the future Hokage"

"Eh?"

…

The funeral was depressing, to say the least. Sasuke had accompanied Sakura to buy her a set of dark clothes, Sakura asked no questions and only did as she was told, vaguely understanding the dress code for such a dark event. The outfit that Sakura picked out somewhat resembled the Uchiha fashion with its pitch black color and high collars and for the bottom Sakura had chosen to wear a pencil skirt but started to regret that decision when she found the restriction of movement from her legs. She felt unstable when her thighs are forced to rub against one another and the distance between her footsteps had been cut down, making her walk much slower. It felt like she was going to trip on her own feet, albeit Sasuke's firm presence beside her made her feel better.

The whole village had been gathered at the memorial stone where a picture of Sarutobi Hiruzen sat atop his coffin, behind his laid neatly arranged band of other coffins that contained the other shinobi casualties of the invasion.

Like true shinobi, not a person wept, or made a sound hinted their anguish. Posture upright and emotions were devoid of their features. One by one, they each stepped up to offer the white lily they had all been given to the Hokage and those who died protecting the village they all shared the love for.

_It's not fair. _

To Sasuke, the Hokage was someone that understood him unlike those that pretended to show him sympathy when his parents died. Instead, in his brother's place, the elderly village head came to visit him every day as he was busy practicing the fireball technique that had been taught to him by his father before the man died and often, Sasuke thought the Hokage was simply sympathizing for the loss of the majority of his clan and his parents and for a certain time he immersed himself in that pity and even going so far as to feel sorry of _himself_, he showed little respect but not enough ignorance for him to seem rude to the Hokage because no matter how much he didn't like the elder man's presence, he was still a member of this village. But day after day, he unknowingly began to look forward to his unannounced visits.

To Naruto, he was the person that he strove to become and true shinobi he wished to surpass; his very first goal. He knew—he was a loud, rude, over-confident troublemaker that nobody wanted and yet the Hokage accepted him for who he is, instead of everyone else that tried to steer him off his track, the old geezer of a Hokage nudged him to become what he is today. When everyone shunned upon him when he fell, he reached out and offered him his hand. He wanted to become just like him, well-loved by the village yet he held a powerful position in the shinobi world.

To Sakura, she had witnessed countless lives fading before her very own eyes by the time she could walk and hold a kunai and by now she had grown accustomed the inevitable deaths during battle. She hadn't been loyal to this village for a long time either so now, she wasn't quite sure how was she supposed to react to the death of the Hokage. She didn't feel like she had lost anything and immediately after having that thought she felt bad for it because there are people that lost their kage today. It was her turn to offer her lily and her final thoughts to the Hokage.

_The Shinobi code number 25, A shinobi must never show emotion. _

The sky rumbled as Sakura lowered her flower onto the mass of its kind. Her mind was replaying the first day she step into Konoha how she had met Itachi in the Hokage's office.

_She had been nervous to meet the Kage of another village, as she was walking to the Hokage tower she had wondered what kind of man would he be and then she came face to face with an elderly man, his eyes calculating as he looked at her from head to toe. She remembered stiffening when his two councilors had declined her request to gain a citizenship in the village however all the Hokage did was smile at her, creating crow's feet at the corners of his eyes as he welcomed her to the village. That simple gesture had meant a lot to her, for the first time in her life, she had felt like she belonged somewhere. _

It was at that moment when she realized that although she had never gotten to know the hokage much, with that simple smile she was able to feel safe knowing that the village she was going to be living under was under his care. She had unknowingly allowed herself to place her faith in him—he was a true Hokage.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The raindrops fell, one by one before the downpour.

_The shinobi code number25—broken. _

Next Chapter

"Yeah! Go Fuun-hime! Justice will always triumph!"

"Are you unhurt, princess"

"What a movie we've filmed"

"Shoheki!"

"It hurts..."

* * *

**I want to say thanks for the number of responses I got for the questions and the reviews. I really appreciate the reviews after I upload a chapter. It makes me really happy, so thank you! Whether you've reviewed or not, thanks for reading! **

**Question: **

**Can anyone guess what's the reference for the next chapter? **


	8. Mission in the Land of Snow

**Mission in the Snow Country**

"We will not be able to go anywhere"

"There is no route from here"

"This journey was hopeless"

"Let's give up"

"There is a way, Let's believe in it, We will surely be able to find it"

"But princess"

"Don't give up"

"HAHAHA! FUUN-HIME, YOU LOT WILL NOT BE ABLE TO PASS ANY FURTHER THAN THIS!"

"You are, Mao!"

"You're the cause of this storm!"

A hysterical chuckling "You should beg for forgiveness, Fuun-hime"

"Watch out! Fuun-hime" Naruto's loud voice alerted the whole cinema of people of their presence on the ceiling.

"I won't give up, as long as I live, I will turn everything I have into strength, I will show you that I can cut a way open" the people on the screen continued to speak.

"The seven coloured chakra is burning"

"Yeah! Go Fuun-hime! Justice will always triumph!" said Naruto.

The clattering sounds of wooden sandals drew closer and closer before the genin of team Kakashi had a very angry theater staff shouting at them "Hey! Sneaking into theaters and watching the movie for free is illegal!"

Naruto turned his attention from the movie to the man and promptly lost the concentration of his chakra "AH!" his voice pierced through the air before his loud and painful sounding landing left a faint tremor on the ground. Naruto pushed himself to sit up, rubbing his head painfully as he explained their position to the man "We didn't sneak it" Naruto shot the man a cheeky grin "We're training!"

"Training" the man shot him a skeptical look before Sasuke and Sakura landed swiftly behind him. Startled, the man whirled around only to have a ticket shoved in his face "If it's about the tickets then we have them" Sakura pointed out.

The man took a step back from Sakura and turned back to look at Naruto, catching the gleam of his forehead protector. "Are you kids Konoha shinobi? What are you doing here?"

Sakura carefully slipped her little piece of paper into her pouch before her attention was earned by the man before them once again, obliging to his questions "Yes, we're Konoha genins, we're on a mission" she said in a cheery voice, like a child that was about to visit the amusement park.

The man raised an eyebrow at her and once again Naruto's loud voice bounced across the theater walls. "Hell yeah! Konoha's future Hokage, Uzumaki Naruto-sama!" Naruto declared before laughing in a proud manner with his hands on his hips and his chest puffed up. Amidst his laughter, he chose to remain oblivious to the loud booing of the people that were trying to watch the movie.

Sakura and Sasuke winced when someone's lethal slipper was slapped onto his face with such force that the blonde genin was knocked off his feet.

…

After being thrown out of the theater and told that they were never allowed in there again, the team found themselves loitering at the vacant space behind the theater which was supposed to be the meeting point with their teacher.

This being the first time that Sakura had actually seen the main city of the Fire country, she stood on the stack of pipes and dangled her arms on the high wooden fence watching the different types of people that passed by whether it be in carriages or by foot, Sasuke didn't think he had seen a person that was _this_ fascinated about something in his life.

"Hey, Sasuke" Sakura said, not looking at him.

"Hn" Sasuke grunted to show that he was listening.

"What do you think normal people do in their spare time?" she asked.

Sasuke snorted "How would I know" glancing swiftly at her dangling figure then back to the ground.

Deciding to drop the subject, Sakura sighed dreamily and allowed her figure to relax on the wooden fence as she continued to observe the lives of citizens. An almost brooding silence once again engulfs the air.

Naruto shot upright from rolling around on the grassy floor. "AHH! This is so frustrating! Where is Kakashi-sensei! I need some action!" he cried out in desperation.

"Shut up, you loser. If it weren't for you, we'd be watching the ending of the movie now" Sasuke snapped, obviously not enjoying the lack of activity as well. Naruto fumed, he was thirsting for something to do and he was willing to pick a fight with Sasuke for it or he was sure his body would explode from his own energy.

"Sasuke! Let's battle! Right now!"

Sasuke didn't even bother to look at his teammate, deciding to keep his lashes neatly closed over his eyes and downright reject the blonde knucklehead. "No"

"You're just scared to lose!"

"No, you're simply a waste of energy."

"I'll show you who's a waste of energy!"

As Naruto squared his shoulders and prepared to storm over to Sasuke, Sakura's eyes squinted as she watched an approaching… figure? _Wait, is that a horse? _Sakura's eyes widened when she realized its route. Before she could unlatch herself from the fence, the horse leapt over it. Sakura's wide eyes followed. "No way…" she mumbled to herself before she caught a glimpse of the horse's rider.

Sasuke was on his feet and Naruto had leapt over to the other side to avoid being trampled by the horse. Sakura glanced over her shoulder to look at her teammate's expression. Naruto glanced at the trail of the horse quizzically "Was that…?" his voice trailed. Sakura felt the tremors of the ground, she looked back over the fence and noticed a whole horde of horsemen coming right at the fence.

Instantly, she kicked off the fence and landed unknowingly in front of the door just as it blew open. Sakura felt her body jerk forward and then her legs leaving the ground. Their bodies tumbled and both of them flipped to their hands and legs in a cat-like crouch position. "Hey guys! Isn't that the Fuun-hime?!" they heard Naruto call from the side.

"Let's go after them" Sasuke ordered, Sakura nodded.

Injecting force into their hands, they shot up into a running start as their speed increased with every step. "Ah! Wait for me!" Naruto shouted.

Blindly, the men that pursued after the white horse and it's rider felt into Sakura's genjutsu and was now chasing an illusion, their target fell off the horse and they pounced on her only to have a small smoky explosion go off, revealing the pink haired kunoichi that stood in her place. Sakura's eyes flashed with a moment's of cold-bloodedness as her finger twitched for the kunai in her holster however she conflicted against it and instead chose to fight fairly with only her hands.

Making quick work of her bunch, she looked up to see Sasuke looking at her with a bemused expression she felt her body grow warm with pride when she noticed the trail of unconscious and groaning men and their horses behind him.

After deciding that their crooks shouldn't be left alone, they had decided to tie them up till Kakashi showed up and told them what to do. They had a feeling this has something to do with their mission, and sure enough, their sensei showed up just as Sasuke had finished tying the last man, on a tree with his mocking orange book.

"Oh my, what are you guys doing?" he asked in a tone that resembled a tutting mother's

Sasuke straightened after he secured the knot. "Wasting our time" he answered simply. His eyes vaguely widened when Kakashi disappeared into thin air, cursing his eyes that hadn't been able to follow his sensei's movements. Kakashi appeared just behind him and Sakura and Sasuke watched in horror as all their hard work unraveled itself.

Sasuke glared at his silver haired sensei and Sakura felt slightly peeved though she tried to hide it. Kakashi laughed nervously as he helped up a middle aged man with a squinty eyes and a pair of round framed glasses "Sorry about that" Kakashi apologized.

Sasuke twitched. _He ruined our work and he apologizes to the enemy…?! I'll kill him. _

Sakura approached the two men "Kakashi-sensei?" she said, but her teacher could tell that that was her way of demanding an explanation. Kakashi turned around and stepped aside, allowing Sakura to face the humble looking man that was adjusting his glasses.

"Sakura, Sasuke, this man is our client for this mission. Sandayuu-san" Kakashi stated.

Surprised and somewhat embarrassed, Sakura bowed her upper body with a professional aura; her hands were strictly at her sides and her back was straight. "My apologies" and said nothing more. Her heard Sasuke's footsteps and watched as his feet came into view from her bowed position but did nothing to move from her position.

"Please, raise your head. There's no need for such formalities, at least now I know that Yukie-sama will be under excellent hands" she heard an unfamiliar voice in which she assumed belonged to the man called Sandayuu. Only then did Sakura raise her head, she replaced the business-like aura around her with her usual comfortable and cheery one.

"First we'll need to find Yukie-san" Kakashi interrupted the silence.

Sasuke and Sakura looked at each other before Sakura spoke "Naruto pursued her"

…

Yukie stared wearily into the river, letting out a few occasional heavy sighs as she remained oblivious to the person watching her from behind a tree. Another sigh.

"Are you unhurt, princess" came a gravelly, husky voice from behind her.

Astonished by his presence, she jumped slightly and prepared to defend herself only for her assumed attacker to break out in a cheeky laugh "Just joking" Naruto's eyes twinkled with his smile, he leaned down to look at her straight in the face, examining her every feature as his target shuffled backwards uncomfortable "Wow, you really are the Fuun-hime, I love your movie by the way, especially the way you said-" Naruto straightened and put on a serious face "Don't give up" attempting to imitate that scene as if he was the actress.

Naruto laughed at his own silly attempted before he noticed that his princess was mounting her horse "Hey! Where are you going!" he called after her, he took a step forward and unfortunately for him the horse bucked and kicked him into the water with a loud splash.

Yukie rolled her eyes at Naruto's foolishness and proceeded down the road in a canter, entering the more rural areas of the city where children played by the river side and slopes. Her heart softened slightly as she heard the loud giggling of a child.

"I'm not going to give up, I'm going to be Hokage someday!"

This time, Yukie really did jump. Her body jolted violently and she had nearly cried out in astonishment. She looked to the side and caught a blinding orange in her eyes, there he was, running side by side with her cantering horse, was the boy that she had just knocked into the water. Gritting her teeth, she brought the whip down on the horse's behind and immediately the white steed transitioned into a gallop and leaving Naruto behind.

"Where are we going, Hime?"

This time Yukie did cry out in surprise for the source of the voice was so close, it was directly behind her and she could feel the heat radiating from the young boy's body behind her. Yukie contemplated on how she could get rid of him and in that second she took her mind off the road, she hadn't realized that children had just run out in front of her path, laughing and giggling with a ball.

"Watch out!" Naruto's loud voice plunged her back to reality but it was too late.

She jerked the reins back as far as it would go and the horse lifted its front legs and began kicking at the children. Naruto caught a flash of pink and realized that her teammate was shielding the children as she attempted to calm the horse. "Sakura-chan! It's dangerous!" Naruto shouted before he realized that he had lost balance on the slanted horse and was sent tumbling to the ground along with the actress.

Sakura jerked her head back and barely avoided wild hoof in her face and that's when she sensed her other teammate's presence as he shot out from the high grass on the slope and grabbed the bridle of the horse before forcing it towards the side of road and down the other slope. Sakura watched in horror as Sasuke went tumbling down with the horse and into the tall grass.

The sky was getting dark and Sakura couldn't see where was Sasuke, so she called for him.

"Sasuke!"

There was an rustling of leaves and grass before Sasuke emerged from the tall grass covered with a sprinkle of leaves and twigs as he muttered lowly "I hate animals" He looked up to meet the smiling eyes of Sakura and couldn't help but feel a proud tingling in his stomach when he realized that he had saved her from danger. He scowled at this.

Sakura turned from him and began walking towards the actress who was still on the ground, shocked of what had just happened. "Yukie-san, right?" Sakura offered a hand to help her up but realizing that she was completely surrounded by shinobi, she decided to make a run for it.

Her shoulder collided with Sakura, making the kunoichi stagger backwards.

"Ah!" Naruto realized her attempted for escape and gave chase, however his teacher had beat him to it. Lifting his forehead protector from his eye, Kakashi's sharingan spun and Yukie fell limp. He placed an arm around her waist before hoisting her up to his shoulder then looked at his team "Let's go"

…

Team Kakashi found themselves in a unfamiliar location surrounded by a set of equipment they didn't recognize. Sakura in particular did not enjoy feeling like she was surrounded by machinery on a stick that flashed brightly occasionally so it was no surprise that Sasuke felt her hostility eating away at his side.

Her expression remained neutral however Sasuke knew better than that and noticed the slight crease on her brows, she was on edge and Sasuke could do nothing to make her feel at ease. She still lacked trust in them.

Sakura perked up all of the sudden and stiff figure straightened just as Kakashi entered the scene. "What took you so long, Kakashi-sensei" Naruto whined. "Right, we'll get on with the mission briefing" Kakashi said, completely ignoring Naruto's comment and earning him an unsatisfied frown from Naruto.

"Our mission is to protect Fujikaze Yukie, the actress who plays Fuun-hime as she films her new movie"

"Protect?" Sasuke inclined, not quite understanding why a normal civilian actress would require protection, and from what?

"Well, protect isn't the accurate term, so let's just say we're her escorts" Kakashi said, rather cheerily. Sasuke raised a brow, that didn't answer much but before anyone could press him for any more information, a new voice joined the conversation.

"I'm really sorry for the trouble that Yukie-sama has caused you" the one that the genins recognized as Sandayuu said.

Sakura smiled "None of us where seriously injured, so it's fine"

Naruto made his thinking face which includes him scrunching up his brows and squinting his eyes to slits. "Why does she do that? Runaway I mean"

The elder man's shoulders slumped slightly and he exhaled "That's just her, though she has been running away more often from the sets since we told her that we'll be shooting in the Snow Country" he said in a slightly exhausted tone. Guess chasing a spoiled princess around for the whole day can be tiresome.

"Snow country? Isn't that a bit too far for go for a movie?" Sakura asked, she had heard of the snow country that was located way up in the north but she had never been there before or seen what Snow was like.

"It was a recommendation from her manage and after taking a look at the pictures, the director didn't have any second thoughts"

Once again, a new voice and this time they were completely unfamiliar with the man. They turned to look at an average looking man with his cap on backwards and holding a rolled up script. Sandayuu quickly introduced him as the co-director.

While everyone exchanged greetings, Sakura's eyes remained glued to the pictures that she had just discovered was pinned on the bulletin board she standing next to. Her eyes examined every bump of the snow, the gleaming of the glaciers when it caught sunlight. She felt an irresistible urge,no, _longing_ to reach out and brush her hands onto of the white substance. _What a strange looking world._

"They're beautiful aren't they" there was a deep manly voice that resounded from behind her. Her fingers twitched before her arm had been grabbed by someone, alarmed by this gesture, however she didn't have the time to react to it before her mind registered on who had grabbed her. "Sasuke" she said, looking at him.

He held her gaze for awhile before it shifted to the man that stood behind her, scowling slightly as he said "I advise you not to walk up behind her" he turned and smirked before muttering sometime along the lines of "You might lose a head"

Immediately Sakura felt the pressure of the presence disappear supported by the evident shuffling sounds that his shoes made against the floor. Sakura turned around to examine who she had so carelessly allow to sneak up behind her and her eyes widened slight when she recognized the person.

"Oh? Aren't you the one that played Sukeakuro in the movie, Michi-san? Am I correct?" Sakura asked.

"Indeed I am, little lady" The man flashed a wolfish grin at her and Sakura had suddenly felt the blood rise to her face. Sasuke visibly frowned and Naruto looked frustratingly at the actor.

…

Her world blurred, spun and darkened before finally her vision cleared. Yukie groaned when her head throbbed loudly and her ears pounded.

"I see you've awakened, Yukie-sama"

A familiar voice, she recognized it.

"Sandayuu?" she groaned as she sat up, rubbing her face and then gripped the sheets when she felt her world tilt once again. "Whoa" she said, breathlessly.

"Sandayuu, is it… swaying or is it just me" she asked her manager with a narrowed eyed frown.

With a sigh, said manager was forced to break the news. "You're not hallucinating, Yukie-sama"

At once, her light blue eyes shot open, stumbling gracelessly and with much difficulty to the door, she fumbled with her hands to turn the knob. Once the knob was turned, the door blew open by itself and she was instantly met with the cold sea breeze. Her fist clenched as she screamed a stream of vulgarities that would put sailors to shame.

After much persisting from Sandayuu, the extremely grumpy princess agreed to film and film they did, scene after scene after scene. Amazed by her skills and the way she keeps up with the camera, Yukie earned a new found respect within her shinobi escorts. Soon enough, nightfall came and the team took shifts standing watch. It happened to be Sasuke turn to keep watch when the ship jerked to an abrupt halt.

The next think Sasuke knew, he heard the shaky call for the director from the co-director. "What is this!" the director yelled, his script in one hand and his still steaming mug of coffee in the other.

"I'm really sorry sir, our route was blocked by the time we had awaken" one of the ship's staff bowed apologetically.

As the adults chattered away with their discussions and propositions, Sakura drowned out her surroundings as her attention had immediately been captured by the white substance that lingered in the air as she approached the front of the ship. "Wow" her breath escaped her in fogs and instinctively she covered her mouth with her hands before giggling into them.

Leaning against the cold metal railing, was Sasuke who had yet to realize that his gaze had been fixated upon his kunoichi teammate and was watching her rather openly, his usual emotionless eyes were twinkling with a ghost of fascination until Naruto elbowed him in the stomach.

"Ah, staring at Sakura-chan. You're such a creep, Sasuke" Naruto said rather loudly.

The blonde immediately regretted his decision when his face was found imprinted on the decks. Sasuke glanced over at Sakura subconsciously, hoping that she hadn't heard Naruto but sighed when he realized that it was impossible for her to not have heard it. She, to his surprise, returned his gaze but then quickly pulled away as if stung by an invisible bee.

Sasuke's heart fell, she didn't think he was a creep, did she? Because he certainly wasn't, he was… just looking out for her, that's all. They were just… teammates—that's all.

"That's it! We'll film here!"

Everyone's attention immediately snapped to the director whose voice had just echoed through the microphone. "E-Eh?!"

…

Sakura was helping out with the equipment and briefly smiled to herself when she heard the director grumbling enthusiastically to himself "I'll show them the power of the God of Movies" he chuckles demonically.

Sakura turned her attention towards the mobile fire pit that had been lit, courtesy of Sasuke, where Yukie and her sleepy blonde teammate were huddled around it, holding their hands over the bright flame. They yawned identically and Sakura stifled a giggle, her body switched back on alert when she heard her name being called out.

"Ah, you can put that down there, Sakura-chan" the co-director said.

Sakura's foot automatically came to a halt before she lowered it onto the snow and she wriggled it into the ground and digging it firmly into the ground. She took a step back to examine her work, apparently this white triangle on a stick was supposed to improve the lighting, or so she was told but frowned when she didn't see a difference.

"Right, get into positions" The director's booming voice cut into everyone's work.

Sakura shuffled away from the equipment until she was behind the director's seat and next to Sasuke. "Aaaand. Action!"

_Boom._

Wait, was that supposed to happen?

The cliff in a distance exploded all of the sudden and the crew members mumbled between themselves, obviously not being informed of such an event as well. Sakura glanced over at Sasuke, who, too was on guard. Naruto scratched his head rather loudly and blinked sleepily "Huh?"

The director blinked, surprised "You! When did you get in front of the camera!" he shouted.

The genin turned their attention to their sensei, indeed he was within the camera's range just next to the actor, his kunai was drawn and his eyes hard.

"Stay back!" Kakashi commanded, not risking even a glance back his eyes scanned the glaciers and cliffs for any sign of movement his body stiffened when another voice boomed in the air.

"Welcome to the Snow Country" A low and somewhat sinister voice said.

Kakashi's eyes narrowed, recognition lit in his eyes.

On another glacier, the ice on top came shattering down and large bat-like wings were exposed before they folded back in place on the back of a petit girl with a metal helmet on, her pink hair stuffed through the holes on top, resembling twintails. Her eyes were the same shade of green as Sakura's except they were narrowed in an arrogant way.

"I welcome you, Koyuki-hime back to the snow country. Did you bring the hexagonal crystal?" she said.

A flash of surprise flickered in his eyes and he gave a glance back at the Yukie, but almost immediately his attention turned to the closest hill.

Sensing his exposure, a burly shinobi with similar armor rose from the pile of snow and laughed "As expected of Hatake Kakashi, I can't get any closer" his eyes were completely black with no signs of an iris, his hair was brown and short and cropped, only the top of his hair could be shown with his headgear on.

"Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura" Kakashi called.

The three genin were instantly behind him.

"Sakura, protect Yukie-san at any costs. Sasuke and Naruto, help everyone back onto the ship" Kakashi's orders were firm much unlike his usual tone. The three nodded, their sensei had acknowledged the strength of the enemy and they knew they needed to keep their guard up.

Upon seeing the scatter of people, Nadare, who they assumed was the leader, gave his orders as well. "Fubuki, Mizore, capture Koyuki-hime"

Fubuki chuckled darkly "I love it when they run" she breathed with a morbid fascination dancing in her eyes.

Kakashi raced to the cliffs where he crossed weapons with the ponytailed man, Nadare. Nadare was a man who looked around the age of Kakashi with pale violet hair that were tied up in a ponytail, his headgear was similar to Mizore's and only the top part of his hair could be seen. There were markings below his teal eyes of the same color as his hair.

Their kunais clashed fiercely and their hardened gaze met one another. "It's been awhile, Kakashi" Nadare greeted.

"Roga Nadare" Kakashi scowled.

Naruto's shadow clones were proving to be off excellent use during the evacuation as hordes of them went back and forth, carrying props, lights, stands and even people.

Sasuke placed a stand into the ship before he heard a clash of metal, and this time it echoed way to closely to be Kakashi's.

Sakura flung a flurry of kunais at the bulky man on who was on his snowboard but for some strange reason, every projectile that she threw at him had been repelled without effort. Sakura's iris shrank and her eyes widened when she realized that the man had no intention of stopping and he was heading straight for Yukie, who was still frozen stiff, her eyes were wide and her hands were held to herself.

Sakura lunged at Yukie, knocking her out of the way just before Mizore managed to grab her—or run her over.

Sensing another hostile presence that lingered above her, she whirled around, still sitting on the ground with a kunai in hand, ready to take that attack but before the Fubuki could do anything, her something wrapped itself around her wings and ceased it motion before she was roughly tugged to the ground.

After having successfully brought his opponent to the ground with his wires, Sasuke formed a set of seals "Katon, Ryuka no Jutsu (Fire Release, Dragon Fire Technique)" flames spread began to spread and travel up the wires at an increasing speed but ceased when Fubuki snapped the wires with her wings and took off into the air once again.

"Hyouton, Tsubame Fubuki (Ice Release, Swallow Blizzard)" The ice on the ground rose and shot at him in the form of swallows but was quickly melted when met with Sasuke's fireball technique.

"Naruto, is everyone on the ship" she yelled.

Naruto counted his clones and then halted "Ah! Fuun-hime!" he shouted, realizing that they lacked the actress.

Sakura swiped a kick at Mizore's arm, effectively knocking it away from her before she thrusted her other to the man's stomach. Her eyes widened when he grabbed her leg and threw her off like a doll, skidding across the snow and creating a trail.

Mizore's eyes shifted to Yukie who had just sat up, eyes still frantic and hyperventilating, her heard a familiar voice in the wild buzzing that rang in her ears. Brief images and memories flowed into her mind at a dizzying pace.

"You Highness!" Sandayuu called again, struggling towards Yukie through the depth of the snow.

"Sandayuu" She gasped, turning to look at her manager but now she was made aware, he wasn't just her manager.

"Hyouro no Jutsu (Ice Prison Technique)" Fubuki smashed her hand into the ground with a frustrated look in her eyes.

Sasuke leapt back to avoid a pillar of ice emerging from the ground and repeated till he was out of her range, his attention shifted for a split second when he heard the desperate cry of Sandayuu. "Hime!"

He then swore when his opponent caught him off guard as she sent him another flurry of ice swallows, he quickly counters with his fireball.

"No! I won't go back to the Snow Country!" They heard Yukie shriek.

"Koyuki-hime, stop being so selfish!" Sandayuu scolds.

And out of nowhere, web-like ropes had been shot at Yukie, effectively trapping her but before Mizore could reel her in, Sakura severed it with her kunai; her eyes looking at his sharply as he once again approached her on his snowboard.

"Get out of the way! Little brat!" Mizore spat.

As soon as he said that, he found himself being knocked off his snowboard and into the snow filled ground by a blur of orange. Mizore quickly got on his feet, drawing his hand back for a punch as Naruto got up as well and too his surprise, Naruto took his metal fist and when he tried to punch him again, the blonde seized his other hand.

His eyes widened when he saw sparks of electricity shooting from the joints of his armor and the destructive chakra that the boy before him emitted. _What kind of chakra is this…?! _He barely contained himself from gasped when Naruto raised his head, revealing his piercing red eyes and sharpened canine teeth.

His voice rang out loudly as a battle cry before he summoned all his strength to fling Naruto away.

More pillars rose from the floor, Sasuke dodged them, then more came from the other way, he was cornered then he jumped into the air, but one of the pillars caught his leg and he was caught in the technique.

Fubuki narrowed her eyes but then her catch turned into a kettle with a paper bomb placed on it.

It exploded, sending flames towards her, then sharingan controlled wires shot at her and rounded her, pinning her against her own pillars. Her eyes caught something bright on the wires, flames climbing the thin string and headed straight for her.

Fubuki spread her wings and once again snapped the wires before taking to the sky.

Mizore glanced around before his eyes landed on Yukie who was kneeling next to Sandayuu, shouting with her head in her hands. Aiming his arm at her, he fired his fist that was attached to his wrist by a thick cable. Just when he thought he hand his target down, a blur of pink jumped in the way and his fist jerked to a stop as it grabbed her Sakura instead.

Annoyed, he pulled back on his fist and roughly jerking Sakura forward before slamming her down back onto the ground. "Get lost!" he barked. Sakura landed into the snowy ground, throwing fine snow into the air as she landed "Ah!" It wasn't until the white blanket had cleared up before Sasuke and Naruto watched in horror as their teammate struggled to push herself back up.

She got on all shaky fours before her chest swelled and she .

_Big mistake._

Out of nowhere, Sasuke slammed a leg down onto Mizore's head just milliseconds before Naruto planted a sharp kick to his gut, sending him tumbling gracelessly backwards. Sasuke landed swiftly on the ground, his sharingan activated and a glare fixated in his eyes. Naruto let out a low guttural growl, his body crouched like a predator, his shoulders were rolled forward and his back hunched, making it curve in an almost gracefully deadly stance.

"Damn brats" Mizore cursed them as he got up, wiping at the side of his mouth.

Stiffening, Naruto and Sasuke could sense Fubuki's next incoming attack from a mile away and easily avoided drop kick. Sasuke coincidentally ended up next to a coughing Sakura, he glanced at her and took a deep breath to calm himself. "Sakura" he called, silently demanding her assurance.

"I'm alright, Sasuke" Sakura answered in a hoarse voice and answering Sasuke's silent question.

"Princess!"

A desperate voice split the air and the team turned their attention to see Yukie lying motionlessly on the snow with Sandayuu desperately shaking her by the shoulders. "Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura" the commanding voice of their teacher snapped them back on alert. "Take Yukie-san back to the ship, retreat!"

Nodding, they leapt towards Sandayuu and Yukie to make their escape. Naruto grabbed Sandayuu and Sasuke scooped Yukie onto his shoulder and together, the team made their way back towards the ship just as two whales made of ice lifted from the sea and crashed onto each other before smashing down onto the ice burg, shattering the large piece of ice to chunks.

Sakura felt an enemy approaching them and quickly spun on her heel just in time to counter Fubuki's kick, flipping back to gain some distance but her opponent caught on before she could launch another attack, continuously pressuring her in combat.

"Sakura, get down!"

Sakura's head instantly regarded the voice and her body reacted instinctively, she got down on her hands until her nose was grazing the snowy ground and her forearms felt the bite of the cold trampled-on ice.

Her eats picked up the sharp whirling sound of metal cutting through the wind before a loud clang and shriek followed. Before she could react herself, in an instant she found herself being pulled to her feet and briefly exchanging eyes with Sasuke.

"Let's go"

She was caught in a daze as his words reached her ears. _Such a firm voice. Why do the words he speaks bring so much comfort? It's just words, yet when he says it the spec of distrust that stains my heart had been erased. Trust him. _

Energy pulsed through her body once more as she snapped out of the daze. She leapt after Sasuke, his fingers will enclosed around her wrist; they escaped just as the ice burg fell apart.

…

Kakashi was in Yukie's room, standing silently in the darkness as he watched the glimmer of the hexagonal crystal around Yukie's neck, lying on her chest. "Ten years… huh" he sighed.

"OW!"

"I'm sorry, Naruto, you have to stop moving" Sakura stated, trying her hardest to apply the ointment as gently as possible onto Naruto's badly bruised arm.

'Hee…heehee… Sakura-chan's touching my bare manly arm… heeheeheehee'

Naruto squirmed.

"OW!"

…

It took longer than expected for Sakura to completely finish up with Naruto and by the time she was ready to give Sasuke's a hand, he was already halfway through wrapping up his shoulder by himself. He looked like he was having trouble getting the bandage over his arm, the other end of the bandage held between his teeth. Sakura bit back a smile at Sasuke's lack of medical prowess, knowing that it would probably make Sasuke embarrassed.

Then she frowned, noting the awkward position of Sasuke's shoulder blade. "Sasuke, unwrap the bandages" she said in a more commanding tone, one that even her teammates have rarely heard and usually it had something to do with their well-being.

Sasuke looked at her with an eyebrow raised quizzically, the bandage still held between his teeth. "Wrapping a dislocated shoulder will do you no good, Sasuke. You need to relocate it" Sakura stated rather bluntly, looking expectantly at Sasuke with her hand held out. Sasuke made a face "Mai shouder ish faine"

Sakura's pressed her lips into a thin line then reaching towards Sasuke's arm and then lifting up his elbow. Sasuke winced and hissed in pain, clenching his hand so as to not reach his shoulder.

Sakura once again held out her hand to Sasuke who reluctantly hands the bandage end in his hand to Sakura and then releasing the one in his mouth.

Sakura made quick work in unraveling the poorly wrapped bandages and then running her hand on the slightly agitated swell on Sakura's shoulder, her fingers slightly brushing past his mark but quickly moved it away when she heard Sasuke's low growl.

"Sorry" she mumbled instinctively.

She positioned her hand just slightly below the swell and looked at back of Sasuke's head. "This might hurt a little" she said.

She felt him stiffened beneath his fingers before he finally said "Do it"

There was a popping sound and Sasuke hissed, all his muscles tensed and he trembled slightly. Sakura waited for his body to simmer down before she dared herself to move again. Tying the bandages expertly around Sasuke's shoulder, making sure it was tight enough to prevent movement of the sockets.

"Alright, done. Try not to put too much strain into it" she gave her work a light pat.

Letting out a breath that she didn't know she had been holding in, Sakura walked over to the first aid kit and proceeded to work on herself, leaving Sasuke and Naruto to sizzle in embarrassment, their backs turned on her and not quite knowing how to tell her not to be so indecent when around people of the opposite gender.

"S-Sakura-chan… You could had at least warned us before you take off your shirt" Naruto stammered bashfully.

"Hm? We're teammates, aren't we? Shouldn't this be normal?" they heard Sakura answer, her voice innocent and clear.

"B-But you're a girl, you know!" Naruto retorted, his face growing redder.

But before Sakura could answer, they heard the door click open and then the lazy voice of their teacher "Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura-" there was a slight pause in his voice, in which the boys suspected it to be him, looking at their probably half-dressed teammate. "Come to the meeting room after you're done" their teacher continued before closing the door again, showing no special interest in his voice.

Naruto and Sasuke twitched in unison.

"H-Hey, T-Teme. Kakashi-sensei just-" Naruto stopped.

"Yeah…"

"Okay, done" They heard their teammate say in a satisfied voice.

They turned around just as Sakura was putting away her first aid kit like nothing happened.

'There's something definitely wrong about this girl!' Naruto and Sasuke thought outrageously.

…

"I refuse"

"But hime, the people of the Snow Country-"

"It's none of my business!"

The three genin winced when they heard the sharp edge in Yukie's voice, not knowing if this was a good time to join the meeting. Sasuke didn't seem to mind the heavy atmosphere, simply strolling in with his hands still shoved in his pockets.

Sakura and Naruto, however, step in meekly and tried not to make their presence known. Sakura noticed that Sandayuu was on his knees and remained as such even after Yukie stormed out of the room. There was an eerie silence in the room and no movement until Sakura shuffled nervously to Sandayuu who looked like the epitome of crestfallen.

Sakura knelt down and helped him rise to his feet.

"What am I going to do" he sighed hoarsely.

Sakura looked sympathetically at the old man before daring herself to ask "If it's alright with you, would you mind explaining the situation" Sakura glanced back at her teammates "Maybe we can help"

Sandayuu nodded but it seemed more of a gesture to assure himself than his hired shinobi. "Alright"

…

"Wow… so she really is a hime" Naruto said, in awe then pumped his fist silently in self-praise and finding his situation very similar to the heroes in movies. His body now shaking with anticipation, he stood from his chair abruptly and cutting off Sakura and Sandayuu's conversation. "I'll become the hero of this story, count on it, old man!" he gave their client a cheeky grin. Sasuke snorted in his amusement and made no move to hide it as he was faced with a fuming Naruto.

However before the two to launch themselves into an all-out battle in the meeting room, Sakura intercepted it. "What Naruto meant to say is" Sakura said, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly before a sharp gleam reflected in her eyes as she single-handedly changed the atmosphere from chaotic and depressed to a serious air in which the meeting was supposed to take place in before she promised firmly: "We'll definitely do everything we can to help your country, Sandayuu-san"

Shocked yet amazed that the young kunoichi before him was really only around the age of a normal middle school student under civilian circumstances.

Sakura's piercing gaze was broken when Kakashi ruffled her hair to a frizzy mess. "Kakashi-sensei!" she scolded.

"Kids should act like kids, that's what makes them cute, Sakura." Kakashi said, his warm gaze putting a smile on their team's kunoichi.

…

They arrived at the movie's next scene by train, much to Sakura's delight, having never seen one before or been in one before, but she brushed that dream aside when they were told the shinobi had to ride _on top_ of the train to keep them ahead of any ambush from the enemy.

Just as the crew was setting up their lights and cameras, Sakura noticed Yukie's figure disappearing into the tunnel their train had went through to enter the clearing for the scene. Sakura followed silently, masking her presence as she kept a safe distance from Yukie, silently promising the others that she would bring Yukie back if the actress wandered too far.

She barely held herself back from gasping when Yukie disappeared under the ground beneath her. Cursing herself for being unable to respond fast enough, Sakura tried to catch up with the actress who was tumbling gracelessly down a slope.

Yukie finally came to a stop when she felt her stomach collide with a tree and effectively knocking the wind out of her. Gray spots danced mockingly in her vision before the darkness wrapped around her, so why did it feel warm?

_Panting._

_I feel something warm against me. A pillow? No, it's heaving. It's uncomfortable. _

Yukie came to just as Sakura finished scaling the last of the slope, panting heavily as she straightened and jumped slightly to adjust Yukie who was on her back to make sure she doesn't fall off.

"You…?"

"Ah… Feeling better? Does your ankle hurt? You sprained it in your fall." Sakura said between pants, she adjusted Yukie on her back again before continuing with her steps towards the tunnel.

"Let me down, I can walk" Yukie snapped.

Sakura's grip on her thighs tightened. "I just bandaged it for you, it's best not to apply pressure of it for now, Yukie-san" Sakura said in a stern voice. Yukie didn't look pleased, she struggled against Sakura's back and tried to make the small girl drop her. Sakura halted in her steps

"Please don't move around too much, Yukie-san. I don't have the capacity of strength or stamina like my teammates do" Sakura panted then continued walking.

Yukie blinked a few times, keeping still. "You just called me Yukie. I thought Sandayuu informed-" she was cut off.

"The person I was assigned to protect is actress Fujikaze Yukie-sama." There was a pause before Sakura glanced over her shoulder and at Yukie. "Unless, of course, you acknowledge that your name is Kazahana Koyuki-hime. Then I will be obliged to address you as such" Sakura, withholding her professional tone till the end.

Yukie opened her mouth to say something but was cut off when she noticed the tremors on the ground and the shift in the wind. She noticed that Sakura had come to a completely standstill as well.

In unison, they turned their heads back and noticed the incoming train on the tracks and as fast as their realization, the train whooshed past them and into the tunnel in front of them. Sakura and Koyuki looked shocked beyond words. Panic began to grip her heart, Sakura had noticed what was underneath one of the sheets that hid a bump on top of the train and she prayed that she had seen wrongly.

She bolted into the tunnel, ignoring the strain in her muscles as she pushed them to their limits against the deep snow. When finally they emerged into the light from the tunnel, the person on Sakura's back was immediately greeted.

"Ah… Koyuki-hime. Welcome home" said a deep, commanding voice that echoed in the clearing.

Realization struck the princess's features as she registered the tone of voice. "You're…Dotou" she stated breathlessly.

"Why are you hiding behind that konoha brat. I want to face you fully, let me see you, it's been 10 years after all" A man emerged on the top of the train, his features were etched with arrogance and disapproval. Sakura took a step back and growled, trying to hide Yukie the best she could, not wanting to give in to the enemy.

The ground began to rumble and both parties turned their attention to the upward slopes of the clearing.

A series of large logs rolled down the slopes and slammed violently onto the carts, effectively shaking length of the train as well as crushed a few of the henchmen that got off the train to stand guard. A scowl appeared on Dotou's face while a look of excitement stained Sakura's.

"Saaaakura-chaan!" Naruto called from on top of the hill before he shoved another log down the hill.

Sakura took a step into the tunnel to avoid the next barrage of logs.

Then suddenly there was a loud ceremonious battle cry that forced Sakura and Yukie to peek out of the tunnel and what they saw caused both of them to gasp.

"My fellow comrades! Our Kingdom's Koyuki-hime is watching over us! Victory will be ours!" the loud voice that everyone was too familiar with boomed with a volume they never knew he was capable of using and a tone of command that seemed impossible on the feeble old man they knew.

"S-Sandayuu…!" Yukie gasped when she spotted her caretaker.

Sakura's blood ran cold "No!" she gasped, her head whipping to look at the train. Dotou had disappeared and on top of every cart stood a masked henchman, simultaneously tugging off the yellowish sheets that lay on top of the bulge onto of the carts.

Kunai Launchers.

Sandayuu unsheathed his sword "Kazahana Dotou, do you know how long we've waited for this day, I, Asabasan Sandayuu a representative of the 50th brigade. Now, we will avenge the death of Kazahana Sousetsu-sama from a decade ago, prepare yourself!"

They charged.

"No!" Sakura screamed. There were too many, the range was too big and she wasn't nearly as fast enough.

"Fire!"

Within seconds the beautiful powdery snow that she had so admired were coated with red. It was everywhere she looked, _blood, blood and more blood. _

_Hey mister…? _

_Why aren't you moving? _

_Are you sleeping? _

_You can't sleep here, you'll catch a cold. _

She remembered being violently yanked away from the sleeping man, the next time she went to check on him— she threw up.

Yukie noticed that Sakura's breaths became shallow to the point she suspected an asthma attack, her arms were coated with sheen of cold sweat however before she could ask what was wrong, she found herself dropped gently onto the snow and then in a flash of pink, Sakura took off leaving a heavy trail of chakra that even a civilian like Yukie felt it.

Sandayuu swayed on his feet, his hand still clutching his katana though it occasionally looked like it would slip out of his fingers before his hand tightened again.

Dotou snorted "Finish him off"

Sasuke had just finished the task that Kakashi had set for him, landing in a tree to watch the battle, he watched in horror as his female teammate flung herself in front of Sandayuu.

She felt a strange instinctive movement in her chakra, before she felt every one of her chakra points flooding with chakra, everything turned green in an instant.

"Shoheki!"

The kunais were blown off by strong force of chakra, the shinobi shooters could feel it and faltered slightly before their resolve hardened when their leader, Nadare shouted the next raid. "Don't just stand there, take her down!"

Sakura's green eyes hardened but she knew that her control to hold her barrier had failed, she'd merely reacted in the spur of the movement and she had no knowledge on how to bring it up again, she could if she tried it a few more times, but the enemy gave her no such luxury.

As best as she could, she reformed her barrier but her doubts were confirmed when a kunai slipped past her barrier and slid nimbly past her cheek, drawing a small trickle of blood. Her eyes widened when she felt multiple punctures on her body. Knowing that her shield was useless, she cut off her chakra and drew her own kunai, determine to fend off as many kunais as possible.

By now, the devices should be running low on projectiles. _Just a bit more _she told herself. Her ears picked up the familiar whistling sound of the wind being cut. _Sasuke!_

In an instant, all of the kunais before her had been swept off completely by the force of Sasuke's Fuuma Shuriken and it created a narrow opening between the upcoming kunais, just enough for Sasuke to leap off with Sakura.

He picked her up by the waist and carried her against his shoulder with a hand underneath her thighs to make sure she doesn't fall. Sakura shouted in protest and thrashed against his hold. "What are you doing, Sasuke! Sandayuu-san is still back there! Why didn't you save him instead, Sasuke! Go back!" her voice cracked.

She felt Sasuke's hold on her tightened, she continued to struggle but in silence this time. "Sakura, get a grip! He's already dead!" he shouted at her, not bothering to keep the harshness from his tone. Sakura instantly stilled, a look of horror crossed her usually cheery features. Indeed, the man that she thought she could save was lying on top of one of his bloodied, fallen comrades—cold and motionless.

"Kh…"

Sasuke clenched his teeth as he maneuvered expertly to dodge the kunais from the launcher that was closest to them and then went into hiding behind the cover of the leafless trees. He set Sakura down before crouching down next to her and forming a seal.

He set off a series of explosions, the first one occurred just under the middle cart, another one under the main engine but none of the explosions had the power to derail any of the carts, just enough to scare them into movement.

The wheels turned faster and faster as Dotou and his men made their escape but as they were passing the wooden bridge, another series of explosions went off, blowing the bridge to chunks of debris, falling down the cliff. However instead of the whole train being thrown into their rocky end, only half of the carts were being dragged down the hole in the bridge, refusing to be held down, the ones that weren't caught in the hole decided to let go of the weight, breaking the concatenation.

Then finally there was silence.

Sasuke let out a breath he hadn't known he had been holding in then turned to look at Sakura. To his horror, she was yanking out the kunais in her body, one by one. He had been a victim to a kunai raid before and he knew that pulling them out would only cause the victim to lose more blood and not to mention the pain.

Sakura pulled out yet another one before Sasuke caught her by the wrist, he was glaring at her, and she could feel it. She chose to say nothing and tried to take back her hand but Sasuke's grip only tightened. She cursed under her breath. "Let go of me" her tone was cold and distant.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed, they were back to when they first met.

Her sudden exertion of force took Sasuke completely by surprise, he thought she was going to stab him in the face but at the last moment, she threw her hand in the direction of the tree, sinking the bloodied kunai deep into the dark wood of the tree.

"It hurts…" she breathed into his neck, then set her forehead down on his shoulder. "Sandayuu-san… the people's hopes. I can't carry them… and _it hurts_" she croaked hoarsely, as if she was biting back a sob.

Sasuke looked down at her bloodied shoulder and wrapped one arm around in an awkward hug and breathed in her scent that. The previous smell of grass that lingered around her had been splashed with the scent of her blood.

Her arm went limp and her full weight was now pressed on him, he panicked, knowing that she had just lost consciousness. He swore violently and pulled her to lie against his arm, she was losing a lot of blood. Sasuke's head snapped up when he heard Naruto's voice.

"Sasuke! Sakura-chan!"

The blonde was cut off when Sasuke's panicked voice reached his ears. "Naruto! Get Kakashi!"

Next Chapter

"Where. is. the. crystal"

"Bring the girl"

"There was a little static in the air, did you feel that? Sasuke?"

"Couldn't they at least restrain us on our feet?"

"Have a little faith, Sakura"

* * *

**How was that? I'm not sure if there was enough SasuSaku in that, I'll try to do better! Reviews are much appreciated! **

**Random Question of the Day**

**Who is the cooler of the two, Sasuke or Neji?**


	9. Beyond the Snow

**Beyond the Snow**

Sakura laid completely still, her body tucked snugly beneath the blanket. The room was empty and all was quiet. Until her eyebrow twitched, consciousness began to spread in her body, energy circulated first to her face that had been scrunched up in discomfort then to her limbs where her fingers twitched awake.

Her mind was still hazy but she briefly recalled the smell of blood and metal but since when did she not awake with blood and metal on her mind. Then she felt it, the emptiness of the room and the fluctuation of chakra signatures on the other side of a wall. Her ears began to work, it was very faint, but she could hear Kakashi shouting orders and Naruto's loud mouthed battle cries. In an instant her chakra flared in apprehension and she bolted to an upright position. First waiting rid the nausea then struggling to get on her feet from the bed.

The sudden coldness that swept over her made her realize that didn't have her shirt or tights on, but instead her body had been mummified under layers and layers of bandages. She felt restricted but she couldn't be bothered to rewrap the bandages herself. Glancing around the room for her shinobi outfit, she dressed and armed herself before disappearing out the door.

…

The attack came from nowhere, one moment they were tending to the survivors of the army and the next they were under attack by a blimp. After catching them at a disadvantage, snow shinobi rained from the sky and the survivors of the kunai raid were forced to enter battle once more. Sasuke was in a particularly bad mood, having allowed Naruto to tease him endlessly about his reaction to Sakura's injuries and not to mention said kunoichi is still unconscious.

How she suffered the weight of a burden that was never hers to begin with. Her pain. Her choked sobs. It was all their fault and they dared show themselves before him. They were going to pay, and he was going to make them, brutally and mercilessly.

Sasuke lunged at an incoming snow shinobi, grabbing the man by the head and then twisting to manoeuvre his body behind the man then in one swift motion he twisted the man's head to the back. Uchiha Sasuke was _not_ in a good mood.

But despite being grumpy because he didn't get to wait for her to wake, he was glad that she was still unconscious and away from the battle because he knew her character. She would undoubtedly try to get out of bed and throw herself into-

_Pink._

Sasuke blinked a few times, trying to get the image out of his head. He could've sworn that he had just seen Sakura rush past him. He distracted himself by flipping back and kicking a snow shinobi on the back but she was still there. Flushed and panting as she took down enemy after enemy, her hair whipped around wildly, stirred by her flow of movements.

Naruto called out to him from somewhere nearby.

"Sasuke! Isn't Sakura-chan supposed to be in bed?" he shouted with a tone of panic and disbelief.

Annoyed all of the sudden, he shouted back to his blonde teammate whom he had no trouble spotting in the crowd. "Then what the hell is she doing there!"

Naruto landed on his feet after taking down another enemy, his shoulders heaving as he retorted "You expect me to know?!"

Suddenly annoyed with each other's incompetence to keep even an injured person inside, they stood glaring at each other until they heard her scream.

"Sakura!" "Sakura-chan!"

There she was, her body struggling to pull against Mizore's fist contraption as his trapped her petit body in his metal fingers. Grunting in a brute like manner as he played tug of war against the kunoichi. Yukie stood just a few meters away and the boys came to the conclusion that their teammate had probably thrown herself in the way to save her again.

Sakura's made tracks along the snow as she dug her heels into the ground to hold her position while she tries to break free of Mizore's grasp.

Enraged that he was faltering against a konoha shinobi and a girl, Mizore summoned all his strength to throw Sakura off, crashing her into Yukie just as a net fell upon them. As quick as it fell, the net picked them up from the snow and Sakura hadn't any time to retaliate before they were lifted off the ground. Acting quickly, she armed herself with her red string kunai; taking her chances by trying to sever the wires from beneath them.

However as her kunai touched the wire, her hand was greeted with an unpleasant zap that ran through her hand, paralyzing her fingers as her kunai was repelled from the wires. She could only watch as the bright red string dropped a long way down and landed in the battlefield that had never looked so pleasant to Sakura. Oh how she longed to have her feet touching the lumpy snow now.

...

After landing a kick in the yuki-nin's face, Sasuke flipped back and landed swiftly on his feet as he watched his opponent fall backwards and lie motionlessly in the snow; he was about to move to his next target; then he her something metallic land sharply in the snow just next to his foot.

He glanced down and his eyes were greeted with a line of crimson. Sakura's kunai. His head snapped around the battlefield, his sharingan eyes searching frantically for a sign of pink, or her gentle green chakra- Anything.

Instead he found his blond haired teammate, just stumbling back and landing on his butt as he took down a bulkier yuki-nin.

"Naruto! Where's Sakura!" he tried to keep the alarm from his voice.

Naruto took a moment for his brain to register Sasuke's voice then his head snapped towards his teammate, his eyes widened and panicked.

"You lost her!?" he yelled.

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair and gave an annoyed 'tsk' as he bent down and scooped Sakura's kunai up from the snow. He paused then looked up; he immediately noticed that the airship was beginning to leave and the Yuki-nin have stopped coming. She had to be there.

Replacing the kunai in his holster with Sakura's; he tied his wires through the loophole in his kunai before throwing it up at the airship and waited for it to come in contact. Almost immediately after he felt his kunai wrap around a handle of some sort then he was lifted off the ground.

Moments after the ground disappeared from underneath him, Sasuke watched in confusion as a bright orange spec grew larger and larger in front of him. His eyes widened slightly when he realized that it was no spec.

All Sasuke could note from that moment on was the pounding pain in his forehead as he ignored the familiar voice that cursed and swore.

"Damn it, Naruto!" Sasuke yelled, gripping his face to try and ease the pain.

"What the hell are you doing here, teme!" Naruto retorted, he too, was gripping his face.

Sasuke hissed in pain but tried to ignore the pain, he held up his free hand to shut Naruto up. "Don't start, Naruto. Sakura's the priority" he said, trying to ignore the throbbing in his ears.

Naruto nodded, trying to shake off the pain.

…

Sakura struggled relentlessly against the vice grips of Fubuki and Mizore, kicking her feet a few times in attempts to try and jerk herself free but it was no use, with one person restraining each of her arms, she didn't even come close to freedom. She glared furiously up at Nadare as he approached her with a circular disc-like device whose function she had no desire to find out.

She eyed the device with hostile eyes before she had it plunged into her stomach; she felt as if metallic needles had just been pricked into her stomach; she could feel her chakra flaring in self-defence but she was immediately greeted with a brutal electrocution that contracted all the muscles in her body and scorched her insides. She screamed.

Now on her knees and panting she etched the pain in her mind and forced herself to reign in her chakra. She heard footsteps and expensive looking shoes came into view, she looked up warily into the cold and cruel eyes of Dotou; he looked down on her chuckling as he mumbled something along the lines of "Pathetic" under his breath.

Sakura could feel a familiar presence in the room and only then had she been reminded that Yukie had boarded the ship with her; she forced her head to turn to witness the exchange between Dotou and her client.

Dotou reached out his hand and traced a finger around Yukie's ear then down to her cheeks then to her chin "You've grown quite beautiful, Koyuki" the older man grinned darkly before patting her cheek a little harder than necessary. "Where is the hexagonal crystal" his arrogantly narrowed eyes stared down at Yukie like she was unworthy of his presence.

Yukie looked at him with eyes just as apathetic, she lifted the necklace from around her neck and thrust it out in her hands. "Take it, it has caused nothing by trouble" she said, sullenly.

Dotou chuckled darkly, looking perfectly happy but all of the sudden his eyes turned hard and his jaw clenched. "This is a fake!" he roared, the necklace in his hand was crushed like pastries. His glare settled on Yukie, he stomped over and landed a hard slap on her face that threw her to the floor.

His eyes were now murderous as he looked down on her fallen figure. "Did you think you could so easily trick _me_?" he deadpanned.

Yukie gripped her cheek, thinking hard for a moment "That's not possible" then it hit her "The Konoha shinobi" she whispered hoarsely; Dotou's anger immediately shifted to the wary kunoichi; Sakura stiffened and expertly wiped her face of any emotion.

His grip tightened on the shattered pieces of the fake crystal as he pulled on her hand to make her look into his eyes. "Where. Is. The. Crystal" his fury radiated with every word. Sakura kept her composure, sure enough she knew where the crystal was because she felt it tied against her chest, wrapped in layers and layers of bandage; she suspected it was Kakashi who tended to her wounds and Kakashi who put the crystal there but of course she knew that she wasn't supposed to tell the enemy that.

Dotou released her hair and flung the shard at her face, she winced and turned away. "Useless girl!" he yelled at her. He pulled a remote button from his pocket and press it with unneeded forcefulness. Sakura felt the same electrocution from before; the same biting feeling in her cells; she crumpled limping against Fubuki and Mizore's hold. Dotou released the button.

"Feel like talking now?" he growled.

Sakura shook her head, panting.

Dotou clutched the button, but before he could push it again. Nadare strode into the room, nimbly making his way to his employer and leaned in to whisper in Dotou's ear. The corrupt lord's eyes lit up but he said something coherent to Sakura. "Bring them in"

Sakura could feel Dotou's smug gaze even with her head lowered.

"Hey! Let me go, old man! Or I'm gonna kick your ass!"

She knew that voice, that loud obnoxious voice could only belong to one person. Sakura looked at her struggling teammates through the veil of her hair. "Naruto, Sasuke!" she gasped. Then her attention landed on the similar chakra absorbers that each of them now bore. She had hoped Sasuke wouldn't be here, but before the moment she heard Naruto's voice, she had already recognized his chakra. She'd hoped she was wrong.

"Sakura-chan! Are you okay? Don't worry, we're here to save you!"

Sakura nearly laughed there and then, even in the bleakness times, Naruto could still bring light to the situation. She gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm okay" she said, her voice sounded pathetically hoarse to her own ears.

"Get them on their knees" she heard Dotou say.

The shinobi that restrained them kicked the back of his knees and their legs folded from under them. "Watch it!" Naruto snarled at the yuki-nin in a feral tone.

Dotou snorted arrogantly before turning his attention back to Sakura. "I know you know where the real crystal is." he paused to grab her hair, forcing her to look up at her teammates. "So tell me... where is the crystal"

She looked helplessly into her teammate's eyes, knowing that they would have to go through what she did if she didn't answer. She would be the one to cause them pain. She had never been put in this sort of position before, she used to put the mission ahead with such ease; to be able to watch as her fellow assassins were slaughtered as she left them behind to finish the mission. That was before she was human, and now her feelings for her teammates surpassed the mission but her conscience told her otherwise.

Sakura could see the hard look on Naruto and Sasuke's face, as if they were silently encouraging her to hold her ground. "I don't know" her reply was nonchalant.

"Oh?"

Dotou released her hair and put his hand out expectantly to the side, Sakura watched as Nadare placed a similar remote button into the enemy lord's hand. Sakura's breath hitched just as his finger came down on the button. She squeezed her eyes close but she heard nothing from her teammates, just the loud buzzing of electricity.

Annoyed, Dotou raised the voltage and the pair shrieked. Sakura swallowed, her breathing sped and her heart clenched painfully. Dotou looked at her with a triumphant smirk "Does that help to refresh your memory?" he said.

Sakura bit her lip and looked at the crumpled forms of her teammate and her heart broke. She couldn't do it, she couldn't put the mission first. She opened her mouth to say something, Dotou looked at her expectantly but she was cut off by a new voice.

"There was a little static in the air, did you feel that? Sasuke?" Naruto's gravelly voice said.

Sasuke snorted "I didn't feel anything" Sakura's eyes met with Sasuke's onyx eyes, she could a feel a surge of energy and confidence building in her just by looking into his eyes. He gave her a firm nod to assure her. A small smile appeared on her face before her expression hardened once again. "No, not at all" she said to Dotou.

Dotou was losing his patience with them, they were just brats after all and they dared stand against him? What did they take him for, a fool!?

The pushed the button down, the process repeated itself; but every time he thought the pink-haired kunoichi was going to give it; she rebounds with a new found confidence. Then he noticed the look she shared with the raven haired brat. _How very interesting. _

"Bring forward the black haired one" he said.

"Sasuke!" Came the helpless plea of Naruto as his teammate was move from beside him.

Dread began to fill her as Sakura watched the Yuki-nin bring Sasuke till they were face to face. "Sasuke..." she whispered. She knew they were going to do something to him, but her lack of knowledge on what exactly they plan to do to him was what frightened him.

Sasuke's eyes were still brimming with confidence, though they were somewhat wearier than when he had entered. "It's okay, Sakura. Don't give in" he whispered to her just loud enough for her to hear. Sakura bit her lip and looked at him as if she was in pain the nodded.

But her resolve only lasted till the moment something shiny was thrust in between them- a knife and the sharp side was then pressed against Sasuke's neck. Sakura nearly screamed but realized that the knife had stopped.

Sasuke held a look of frustration as he glared sideways at Dotou. "You tell me where the crystal is and I won't have to get my hands bloody." the man chuckled.

Sakura shut her eyes tightly "Alright" she muttered.

Sasuke's neck was released, the genin didn't look pleased one bit. _Sorry, Sasuke._ Sakura mouthed to him her apology before turning her attention to Dotou whose patience was at his limit. "So? Where is it?" he demanded.

"It's tied in the bandages around my chest."

Sasuke's eyes widened upon realization of what that would mean. "Don't. You. Dare" he struggled against his restraints but it was a futile effort, they won't budge. Dotou unzipped Sakura's shirt down the front, reached into her bandages and pulled out the crystal before taking her face up by the chin.

Her reluctant eyes met his and she suppressed a shudder. "If I had known that the crystal was this close, I would've stripped you down and thrown you off the ship myself" Dotou said through his teeth, his anger towards Sakura seething through his words.

"Don't touch her!"

Dotou's head snapped to the struggling Uchiha, snorting at his valiant words. He roughly pushed Sakura's chin away from him and pulled the button from his pocket and pressed down. Both Naruto and Sasuke suffered the full voltage of the restrictor. "Don't tell order me around, brat" he leered down at the twitching Sasuke.

"Sasuke...!" Sakura gasped, pulling against her Fubuki and Mizore's grasp to try and get closer to Sasuke. _Even if it's just a little, I want to go to him. _

Yukie witnessed everything from the beginning, shocked and awed by team Kakashi's bond. She slightly jealous as she'd seen how much they mean to each other. _How can they throw themselves away with such ease just for another._

...

Now at the mercy of their enemy, Team Kakashi's genins were shackled by their wrists and locked up behind bars whereas Yukie received the same treatment, except she wasn't shackled up.

Sakura looked down at her feet as her body swayed slightly, her feet were not touching the ground. She turned to her teammates' cells. "Sasuke, Naruto, how are you feeling?" she asked.

"Couldn't they have at least restrained us on our feet" Naruto grumbled, his shackles clinking as he shifted.

Sakura smiled sheepishly, feeling a wave of warmth building up from within her. Suddenly she felt slightly embarrassed to look at Sasuke, she turned away instinctively; then silently questioning herself. It was just Sasuke- so why did she feel so shy?

"Sakura-chan!"

Suddenly alert at having her name being called out. Sakura shifted her attention to Naruto, tilting her head to the side in question.

"I said... They didn't do anything funny to you, did they?" he repeated his question, his concern still resonating in his voice.

"Nothing they did was particularly amusing to me, though" she answered, not understanding why Naruto would use the word 'Funny' in their situation. They were prisoners, how would that be funny.

"I don't mean funny as in the 'hahaha' funny, Sakura-chan. I mean, did they try to-" Naruto swallowed "touch you, in a pervy way?" he asked, sounding unsure of himself. Sasuke's head lifted, glancing towards Sakura's cell and trying to look as discreet as possible about it.

"No, not that I was aware of" she answered.

"He'd better not have done it, I'd kick his ass all the way to the other side of the world" Naruto flung his legs wildly to try and prove himself through exasperated gestures.

"You'll run out of energy before you'll be kicking anyone's ass" Sasuke deadpanned, his eyes patiently shut as he dangled loosely on his shoulder.

"Go away, teme!"

"I would if I could"

Sakura snickered, amused by her teammates and Yukie stared dumbfounded at her, marvelling at how she was able to smile when they were trapped in such a position.

"We're all going to die, you know" it slipped past Yukie's lips before she could stop it.

Sakura was the only one that had heard her since she was fitted into a cell that neighboured Yukie's. The restrained kunoichi smiled meekly at her. "Probably" she said.

Yukie frowned, confused. "Then why are you taking this so-"

"Yukie-san, I have lived a very threatened life until I met them" Sakura's eyes looked lovingly in her teammate's direction then she turned her attention back to a very confused Yukie. "If you think for one second that I'll allow anyone to die now, then you are sorely mistaken" Sakura's bright green eyes narrowed almost threateningly at Yukie.

Yukie's eyes widened and they held their gazes steady until Sakura broke it with a gentle smile "It's going to be okay, Yukie-san" she assured her client.

Yukie down casted her gaze "Koyuki. Kazahana Koyuki is my real name" she told her. Sakura nodded "Koyuki-san" then she glanced up at her shackles; she twisted and turned her head to take a better look at them. "Naruto, Sasuke"

Her teammate immediately stopped their bickering and focused their full attention on their pink-haired teammate. "These shackles are not joined, if we twist it in two different directions then we'll be able to snap it with enough force" she informed them.

Immediately after being told, Sasuke looked to inspect his own. "We'll need to use chakra if we hope to snap something this thick" Sasuke said.

"Exactly, I'm going to go first." Sakura shifted her body, making herself comfortable to draw strength into her arms.

"Wait, Sakura-"

Sakura cut him off "Sasuke, if I pass out before I could break them then you have to come up with another plan to get everyone out, we must save Koyuki-san"

"Sakura, don't-"

The sound of electrocution had already filled his ears, his breathing hitched as he watched Sakura's legs kick and struggle, her back arched in pain as her whole body glowed with spark of electricity, mercilessly running through her body. He could only watch.

"Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan!" Naruto called from the cell next to him, it was funny cause he thought that the helplessness in Naruto's voice greatly resembled his inner voice. He opened his mouth but there was no voice, and finally the electric sounds came to a stop with a echo of shatters.

Sakura laid completely still, crumpled in a heap of pink on the floor.

"Sakura" he tried his luck and when she didn't reply, he felt himself panic. "Sakura, get up. Stop playing" he said in a commanding voice in attempts to cover up his fear.

Koyuki felt her lungs hitch, her stomach quivered with dread as she looked at the girl that had smiled so brilliantly at her just a few moments ago, now laid motionless on the cold floor of her cell with the shatters of her shackles scattered around her.

"S-Sasuke... She's not moving" Naruto's shaky voice came up.

"Shut up" he snapped unconsciously at his blonde teammate and effectively shutting the latter up. He looked up at his shackles and twisted his hands in different directions, determined to break loose from his chains the same way Sakura did. He felt a small pulse of electricity, he pushed all thoughts of doubt from his mind and summoned all the strength in his body.

He promptly heard Naruto's scream above the chirping of the electricity. "Sasuke, that's enough" a firm and masculine voice broke his concentration. His sharingan activated eyes shot open and watched cautiously as a blur of silver approached his cell with a dead yuki-nin slump on his shoulder. Sasuke became lightheaded and he wondered how Sakura had managed to snap the shackles before passing out completely.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto declared.

"Kakashi, Sakura's-" Sasuke halted his words when he heard a ripping sound and he strained his eyes to focus. Eventually he could make out shapes again, he watched as Kakashi brought Sakura to lean against him, shaking her slightly to try and bring her back.

Her body suddenly jolted violently before her mouth opened, gasping desperately for air as she gripping onto her teacher's sleeves. She broke into a coughing fit, her chest jerking roughly with each cough. "It's alright now, Sakura. You did great... you did great" he told her softly.

She allowed her body to go limp against Kakashi's hold. "Thank you... sensei" she panted and tried to go for an assuring smile but managed just a twitch of her lips. "Stay put, I'm going to release Sasuke and Naruto" Kakashi said, setting Sakura back down.

Sasuke let out a breath he had been unconsciously holding. "Sakura-chan's going to be alright, right?" Naruto sounded anxious, much like how Sasuke was on the inside but he'd rather die than voice it.

"She's going to be fine" Kakashi picked the lock and allowed Sasuke to drop to the ground, the Uchiha sank to one knee as she couldn't find the strength in himself to stand firmly on his own feet. Kakashi made quick work of Naruto's cell as well and then Koyuki's

"We need to get out of here now" Kakashi opened up Koyuki's cell and reached out a hand for her, the slightly dazed princess instinctively reached out to the jounin before Kakashi tugged her to him then lift her onto his back. From the corner of his eye, he saw his only female pupil pushing herself on all fours.

"Can you stand, Sakura?" he asked her.

Sakura nodded, albeit she was breathing heavy. Her whole body throbbed loudly with the soreness of her muscles, especially in her arms but nonetheless she managed to pick herself up. She swayed on her feet slightly before fingers circled her wrist and clasped it tightly. "Sakura"

His voice was a low, smooth and surprisingly comforting accompanied by his hold on her. "Let's go" his words with simple and direct yet it gave her so much courage to know that he was going to be there. He tugged at her hand gently and she took two uneasy steps before she broke out into a run to join Kakashi and Naruto with Sasuke.

Sometime as they ran, Sasuke released her wrist and she found herself longing for it when they came to a stop inside a suspiciously grand room with the ceiling shaped like the inside of a dome. There was a sound of a door slamming shut. "I see you've managed to escape" a steady voice echoed around the walls of the empty room and as their eyes adjusted to the darkness, they could make out Dotou on top of a flight of stairs that was connected to an exit which was currently the only leak of light source.

"Ah! It's you!" Naruto's voice amplified throughout the room

The genin noticed that Dotou was dressed strangely, inside of the traditional robes that they had seen him wearing earlier, his body was now plated with armour that looked similar to the ones that the Nadare and his team were wearing.

"But that's as far as you'll go" Dotou chuckled then clicked something in his hand and multiple explosions went off simultaneously. The team glanced around a heavy air of nervousness that had strengthened now that they knew that room was caving in on top of them with no way out.

A large piece of the ceiling chipped of directly on top of them; Naruto noticed it and alerted the others. "Look out!"

Kakashi spread his legs, determined to think of a counter but someone had beat him to it. Someone that was small and pink. "Fuuton: Daitoppa! (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)"

Sakura held her seal in place as she released the sufficient chakra for the technique, a sudden outburst in wind pressure shot upwards, it continued for as long as Sakura could hold it with the pain of the chakra controller sparking up her body. All signs of debris had been cleared and they could see the sky through the fallen ceiling and the feel the creeping cold of the outside.

The pink haired kunoichi fell on her knees, struggling not to scream as she clutched herself tightly; the residue of the electric shock still hurting her.

"You shouldn't push yourself, Sakura-chan" Naruto said, kneeling next to her, afraid to touch her as if she would cry out if he did. Sasuke's position looked like the mirror image of Naruto and Kakashi shook his head at his boys. _Hopeless. _

One last wave of pain and Sakura let out a breath that she had been holding in her chest. Despite the cold air, her skin was damp with sweat. "We'll split up from here, look for Dotou. Do not engage him if he isn't alone. Retrieve the necklace" Kakashi said, he took a step forward, about to leap out of the fallen building with Koyuki but not before turning around and offering one last word to his boys "Look after Sakura"

And then he was gone.

Sakura strained herself to stand but she couldn't seem to draw energy to do so; she felt weak and heavy like a burden. A hand suddenly touched her trembling shoulders and she stiffened. "Sakura, get on my back"

"What?! Why can't she get on my back" Naruto argued.

"Because I'm faster" Sasuke replied stoically.

"That is so not true!"

Sakura looked at Sasuke's back from the stray strands of her pink hair then limply brought her hands to his shoulders without protest.

The genin had to manipulate their strength properly otherwise they would subconsciously exert their chakra thus causing an unwanted electrocution. Sasuke's heart was pounding loudly in his ears and it's not because they were leaping from tree to tree at sub zero temperature but because he had Sakura breathing warm breath down his neck with every leap he makes.

Maybe he should've let Naruto carry her after all.

"Sasuke, we're being followed" Sakura shifted on his back so that her lips were now next to his ear "Don't stop, keep going" she encouraged and he nodded.

"Naruto" Sakura called out to her blonde teammate, Naruto synchronized his leaps with Sasuke to listen in to Sakura. "When I give the signal, I need you to intercept a Yuki-nin that's coming down the slope on the left"

"You got it"

"Sasuke, the other Yuki-nin is the one with the wings. You're going to have to set a trap for her on the branches. I'll tell you which branch in awhile"

Sakura's eyes noted all the details of the bald forest, they were running out of time; the pair was coming in from behind fast and soon they'll be on top of them.

Sasuke's insides were burning with anticipation, his fingers twitched against Sakura's thighs as his anxiety got the best of him. "Sakura, not yet?" Sasuke asked impatiently and even Naruto glanced over. There was a pregnant pause before Sakura's eyes narrowed in on the incoming pair of branches.

"Naruto, your left. Sasuke, 32 degrees north-east the thickest branches. Drop me on the next branch"

Naruto changed direction and leapt into the clear downhill slope. Sakura slipped easily off Sasuke's back before the latter shot up, unravelling his sharingan controlled wires and creating a web around the two branches that Sakura pointed out. After accomplishing this task, he shot back down to meet up with Sakura who had boldly landed on the bottom of the tree that she had been placed on, and they waited.

Sure enough a whooshing sound following by the snapping sounds of wires and they knew that Fubuki had just been caught in the trap. She yelled angrily as she tumbled through the air before her wings opened up again and snapped the wires

"Yuki-nin aren't that weak!" she roared angrily.

"Are you sure about that?" Sasuke's smooth voice came from behind her. Eyes widening, Fubuki acted rashly violently flung her body to face Sasuke but before she could do so, she was kicked on the side with enough force to send her tumbling back to the ground before poofing into nothing.

Sasuke landed on his feet, sensing a hostile intent from behind him in which he assumed was his opponent, he leapt out of the way to dodge Fubuki's ice swallows, they came around to target him once again. He formed a seal and immediately his body was plunged into a numbing state, his own electrocution buzzed in his ears and his muscles stiffened to the point of no movement.

The swallows came in swarms before his eyes and then his world jerked to the side, the sudden sensation of biting ice prickled on his whole left side, the other side was surprisingly warm. The weight lifted off him abruptly and then a loud clang resonated through the forest.

Sakura stood before him, one of her knees was plant in the snow with her feet. Her shoulders trembled against Fubuki's tanto, her opponent leaned her entire weight against her kunai and she was feeling the burn of it. The blade came dangerously close to Sakura's shoulder but it remained and descended no longer.

Before Fubuki could push it any further, Sasuke landed a successful upwards kick to her gut. He followed her up, appearing on top of her then slammed his heel hard down on her stomach to send her pummelling back down to the snow. Sakura just barely managed leap away on time.

Just then, Naruto came crashing through the trees just to skid and stop in front of Sakura; Sasuke joined them shortly as Sakura helped Naruto to get up. "This stupid chakra thingy is interfering with my ass-kicking!" Naruto raged, clawing at his device.

Mizore's destruction could be heard and Fubuki began to get up from the snow. "My attacks aren't getting through" Naruto admitted almost shamefully.

Sasuke's breathing was heavy, he glanced at Fubuki then he was suddenly hit with a plan; sweeping Sakura up from the ground; he placed her on a tree and told her to stay put.

"What are you doing?" Sakura restrained herself from sounding demanding.

"Just stay here" Sasuke repeated his previous statement.

Sakura grabbed the hem of his shirt to stop him "But-"

What she didn't expect was for him to turn around and smirk at her "Have a little faith, Sakura" and then he was gone.

Sakura sat back on the branch, staring at the space that Sasuke had just been in a few moment ago. Did she trust her teammates?

"Naruto, I have a plan"

"About time! Where did you take, Sakura-chan, you pervert!"

Sasuke twitched and chose to ignore his teammate's demands and proceeded to lay out the plan for him.

"Uh... can you repeat that?"

Sasuke sighed "There's no time, idiot"

"Alright alright, I just have make it count right?"

Before Sasuke had a chance to answer, Mizore's voice boomed from the other side of the trees "WHERE ARE YA, BRAT! SHOW YOURSELF!"

"Hyouton, Tsubame Fubuki"

"Don't be late" Sasuke said before he ran off down the slope of the forest with Fubuki's swallows chasing him. Even at his full speed without chakra, Sasuke could feel the swallows gaining on him; he allowed his speed to slow significantly before he turned around, his body suddenly emitting a very ominous aura despite the chakra absorber going haywire of his body. His sharingan spun as he formed his seals almost mechanically.

"Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu"

A large fireball swirled and shot at the swallows, effectively melting and evaporating them immediately upon contact. Fubuki who had been running behind her swallows attempted to leap back and avoid the flames and she did, to a certain extent, she reached a point where the flames could not reach her. That moment when she had let her guard drop made her vulnerable to the sharingan controlled wires that shot from the flames to wrap around her.

However, before she could even react to her bound situation, Sasuke at dragged her in and swung her over him, slamming her mercilessly to the ground. When Fubuki looked up she couldn't believe what she was looking at, even with the chakra absorber's cackling electricity, half his body had been engulfed in black markings, one of his eyes had turned black and his pupils glowed a piercing golden colour, he was still leaking chakra from his body, her chest constricted with fear as he truly resembled a demon.

A sudden slip of pain reached his features and Fubuki took the chance to try and attack but before she could regain her composure to do so, her teammate crashed from the trees; shouting obnoxiously as he yelled at her to get out of the way.

Sasuke released his wires and leapt away as far as he could, the two collided and literally exploded.

From up on the tree, she could feel the aftershock tremors causing the trees to shiver, her guard went up and stayed there. She wanted to know the condition of her teammates, she wanted to go to them if they're injured, what if they were caught in the explosion? Then what? Helplessness was not something Sakura enjoyed feeling.

She picked up a spike of chakra in which she recognized as the man who put the device on her just behind the wall of glaciers. She thought it strange as she was usually unable to sense chakra from that far away and then she realized that she could feel the chakra within a fixed area and that's when she sensed her teammates coming back for her.

She got up on her feet, the thrumming of her heart slowed once she laid eyes on Naruto and Sasuke, slightly dishevelled and weary as they appeared from behind the tree. She wiped the worry from her face and greeted them with a smile "What took you guys so long" she said, unable to keep the concern from showing in her voice.

Naruto panted a little as he grinned at her "We had a little trouble with these" he gripped restraining device on his stomach.

Sakura knew what he meant, they all shared the same restraint anyway. But when she looked towards Sasuke, she could tell that his cursed mark had recently been activated and that was never a good thing. "Sasuke, your mark-"

Immediately she was cut off "Let's go" Sasuke said, rather impatiently.

"Where are we going?" Naruto asked.

"Dotou is in the middle of the glaciers due south, I think that's where the treasure is" Sakura quickly answered.

"Then we'd better hurry"

...

When they arrived, said man had already inserted the hexagonal crystal and triggered the seal. Dotou laughed manically as the surge of chakra shot to the sky then he noticed he had company. He chuckled darkly then turned to look at the three glaring genins.

"Too slow" he told them.

Sakura lunged for him and her teammates followed just a few steps behind, Sakura drew her kunai and slashed at his face, Dotou side stepped it and took her by the wrist when she slashed past him. Sakura switched from holding her kunai with the tip up to having the sharp end held in the direction of her hypothenor. She slammed her palm into his elbow joint, causing his arm to fold but before she could slam the kunai in her restrained hand into Dotou he threw her aside like a doll; she crashed into Sasuke.

As the two of them tumbled, Naruto took over the fight with Dotou having his attacks easily blocked by Dotou's armor. Naruto gritted his when his fist had been caught by Dotou, instead of trying to break free he swung over his other hand and landed a sharp uppercut to the man's chin.

Before his head could be tilted upwards completely he cause a glimpse of black and blue just before he felt the wind leave his lungs as Sasuke landed a kick to his chest, sending him skidding back on the frozen ice.

Now having been provoked to take on children, Dotou flipped onto his feet, his eyes flashed wildly and his hair slightly dishevelled from the fall as he formed his seals in rapid succession. Before the genins could reach him on time, their enemy had invoked two angry black tornadoes "Hyouton, Kokuryu Bofusetsu( Ice Released: Black Dragon Blizzard)"

Team Kakashi skid to a stop upon meeting their obstacle and leapt backwards when one of the dragons slammed down on them.

However they hadn't managed to jump far enough when the wind from the dragon still affected them, throwing them uncontrollably into the cracked ice. Sasuke and Sakura landed two different floating ice platforms but Naruto hadn't been so lucky and was now struggling to move his frozen muscles through the ice water as he felt both the bite of ice water and the electrocution from the short circuiting device.

His body struggled for life and when he was beginning to drown, the Kyubi's chakra leaked into his system and soon the water around him was stained with his red chakra. The device cracked and broke from Naruto as it sank all the way down.

Sakura searched frantically for any signs of Naruto in the water as Sasuke distracted Dotou and just when she was starting to get frustration and on the brink of jumping into the water to look for her teammate herself, she felt Naruto's destructive kyuubi chakra growing stronger in the water.

A blur of blonde shot from the water and landed in front of her. She watched in shock as his body glowed with red chakra and the water evaporating off of him. Naruto's head lifted and his red piercing slit eyes began to fade back into his blue ones. The Kyuubi had saved him.

Sakura's ears caught a strangled cry from Sasuke's side, hurriedly she turned her attention to see Sasuke being thrown down, shattering the ice before he plunged into the water. His head resurfaced shortly having not fallen deep enough to struggle for retaliation. His face cringed in pain as his cursed mark began to activate, the electricity that ran throughout his body turned black.

Before Sakura could reach him, he shot out of the water; rushing past a dumbstruck Sakura. She watched as Naruto did the same with his mass of clones.

"Fools!" Dotou's voice roared loudly above the wind of his attack.

Through the fierce black wind shot Sasuke and Naruto; Sasuke's body glowed with demonic black electricity with his left hand gripping a thrashing chidori; Naruto's whole body was coated with destructive red chakra and his right hand holding his ready-made rasengan.

Dotou chose not to give in to the creeping fear he felt for the genin team and stood his ground, Sasuke and Naruto drilled their attacks into his torso, pumping more and more chakra as Dotou's armor tried to absorb their attack. The more chakra Sasuke used, the more he felt himself succumbing to the darkness. Frantically, he put a stop to his chakra flow before he could lose control but after doing so, he was immediately thrown off by the repulsion from Dotou's armor. Naruto followed suit when Dotou realized that his armor had been cracked and punched the boy off himself.

"Such low level techniques won't work on me!" his voice roared, but there was a hint of fear evident in his tone now. He was beginning to show weakness. Sakura knew that they had to finish this now, but it seemed to here that her teammates had run out of juice and now they laid at her feet, unmoving and passed out.

She didn't have time to check if they were okay when she noticed the black tornado dragon that was forming, this time it looked determined to finish them off.

Sakura's chakra reacted defensively and immediately she felt a numbing sensation pulse through her. Annoyed and desperate, she needed to get the device off of her. She knew Naruto had managed to do so by overloading it with chakra and she didn't have an expendable chakra source like him so that was definitely out of the question.

Sasuke had not managed to get the device out his body but inside the electric pulses only served for his benefits as it only served to reinforce Sasuke's chidori with the help of his cursed mark.

Now it was her turn and she needed to do it her way. She has 3 seconds before the dragon would be at full power, so she walked on the edge of death. She suppressed her chakra all the way to her core and ceased chakra production.

Chakra is a shinobi's life force. A shinobi's physique a very different from that of a civilians, because shinobis are used to the vigorous superhuman movements that are demanded of their muscles, they require chakra to flow in their body to reinforce their cells, to help increase the workforce of their body. Chakra is naturally produced for a shinobi body to a certain extent, if a shinobi requires expendable chakra to be used in techniques for combat, they will be required to mold it by themselves by creating a balance of physical energy and spiritual energy in their core.

If it so happens that chakra had been completely depleted from a shinobi's body, their cells would not be able to cope and they will die.

And that's what Sakura was trying to do- Die.

Or at least make the device think that she had died.

Since it was a chakra absorbing device, if there was no chakra for it to absorb then it would have no purpose and that would put it on automatic shut down.

By compressing all the chakra into her core, she intended hide herself from the device but to have her body come so dangerously close to shut down just before she had to defend against Dotou's attack was a gamble she wasn't sure she was going to win.

The device glowed red all of the sudden and suddenly it detached itself from Sakura's abdomen. Sakura felt the restrictions of her body come loose and immediately she felt free. She allowed her chakra to come loose and suddenly a very peculiar wave of sensations reached throughout her body, she felt her spine straightened and power in her muscles.

Sakura's eyes glowed an almost burning shade of emerald as she faced the black tornado dragon. Sakura felt as if the control of her chakra had suddenly been placed directly in her hand, she let out an even amount of chakra from all of her points and created a barrier around her and her teammates with relative ease.

The black tornado dragon slammed itself onto the glowing green field again and again but the more it tried, the more it began to lose its power. Dotou didn't understand. Feeling his blood boiling as he reminded himself that he was up against a mere team of kids, he brought his attack back up for one last attempt. Then he heard something growl. It wasn't exactly a growl, more or a mixture of destructive sounds.

"Sandagamae Ookami Inshi (Triple Element Wolf)"

Sakura felt her attack connect then there was a moment of brief of silence before everything within range was blasted back from the vacuum space created by Dotou's broken armour.

When the team came to, they weren't lying on the cold ice. In fact it was quite warm.

Five colours glowed brilliantly in the sky. Soft green grass.

Then everything fell back into darkness. Kakashi watched as his team slept through their exhaustion, smirking with pride. _You guys did good._

Spring bloomed that day in the Land of Snow.

Tears streamed down Koyuki's face, her breath hitching as she could finally return to her right throne as the Land of Snow's rightful ruler. _Sandayuu, everyone, rest well. _

...

Sakura looked at the picture in her hand of the three of them unconscious in the hospital. She couldn't help but smile at Naruto's absurd facial expression. Sasuke slept with a cautiously peaceful face and her bed was located in the middle of her teammates. She had her fingers intertwined on her stomach, her lips slightly parted and her expression, serene.

On the bottom of the photo was the signature of Koyuki.

It was signed to: The greatest shinobi team of all time

-Kazahana Koyuki

Sakura beamed

"Ah! What's with my face!"

**Next Chapter: Imposter Princess**

"Rinko ojou-sama is great danger"

"Get me the Hokage"

"Urgent Mission from the Daimyo, round up team Kakashi"

"They're going to start a war..."

"Wow... She's like a real princess"

* * *

**There really is no excuse for my punctuality. I'm currently working on another fic based on the anime Gakuen Alice. For those of you who know that anime or read the manga, look out for it :3**

**Random Question Time**

_**Who is the better medic, Ino or Sakura? **_


	10. Imposter Princess

**I know I've neglected you guys for too long, there really is no excuse for me to do so but I'm sorry nonetheless! Just read the chapter and let me know what you think in the reviews! :D**

* * *

**Imposter Princess**

The feudal lord of the fire country looked to his advisor with a worried expression. "What are we going to do. My daughter, she's in great danger"

"Sire, if this marriage doesn't happen, the whole country will be in danger" the advisor implied.

"We need more manpower, hire more shinobis, anyone. Rinko ojou-sama must cross that border! I already have all the files of the available shinobi in Konoha here!" the head of security announced boldly, hammering the laminated wooden table to emphasize his point.

The daimyo nodded "Yes, yes. We must! My daughter must make it past the border!" he agreed passionately and reached for the files.

"Sire, if I may" The daimyo heard his advisor say. The man opened a file with information on a specific team. "They may be genin but they're the best of their peers."

"This girl...!" the daimyo choked.

"Yeah..."

With a resolute look, the Feudal lord looked up from the file "Get me the Hokage"

...

Said Hokage was in her office, grumpy as always having been locked up in her office for the whole afternoon. Shizune came into her office with a scroll in her hand, looking flustered "Tsunade-sama! This message came by the official kite of the daimyo"

In an instant, Tsunade's demeanor changed, she took the scroll from Shizune and unraveled it across her messy desk. Her expression shifted as she read the hurried writing word for word. Tsunade looked up abruptly, catching her assistant by surprise.

"Urgent mission from the Daimyo, round up team Kakashi"

Shizune could only nod.

...

Sasuke strode down the hallway in quick steps yet managing to keep his usual calm composure. He was looking for _her._ There could only be one person Uchiha Sasuke would put effort into search for and that person resides in that very manor.

He stopped in front of a grand mahogany door then reached out to twist the doorknob and when he opened the door, his eyes immediately went for the study table which he was sure Sakura would be sitting on and when he saw the lack of Sakura- he promptly panicked.

That was until he heard a distressed sound coming from behind one of the shelves

"Nnngh…"

His breath left his lungs when he saw Sakura struggling to reach a book on the shelf. Being only slightly taller than her, Sasuke reached up and brought down the book that Sakura was after. Sakura turned around and gave him a grateful smile "Thanks Sasuke"

Sasuke handed her the book and nodded before telling her what Kakashi had interrupted his training to tell him.

"The Godaime wants us in her office"

Sakura paused from flipping through the book she just got from Sasuke and looked up, looking slightly crestfallen "Oh, okay." she shut the book then followed Sasuke out of the room, setting the book on the study table on her way out.

...

Sasuke and Sakura were the last ones to come in, Naruto was already in Tsunade's office pestering the already annoyed hokage about the details for their mission. Tsunade looked up from ignoring Naruto when she heard the last members of Team Kakashi come in, her mood visibly lifted as she shoved away Naruto's face.

"What took you two so long" the Hokage sighed, closing her eyes to gather her thoughts.

"It was my fault, Hokage-sama" Sakura apologized.

"No matter. Team Kakashi's presence for a mission is being summoned by the daimyo himself" Tsunade said with tone with seriousness that became very apparent in the room, even to Naruto who visibly stiffened, making him straighten much like a soldier.

To receive an official request from the Daimyo himself would mean that their country was at stake, although they have often gotten requests from the daimyo's wife, Madam Shijimi to find her forever lost cat, they've never actually gotten an official one from the husband himself.

"This is an escort mission, you are to accompany the daughter of the daimyo to the border of the land of earth. As some of you might already have known, the son of the Wind Daimyo has recently been captured by a highly skilled group of rouge Kumo-nin while he was crossing over to the fire country. The Daimyo's daughter is about to be engaged to the prince of the earth country to settle a dispute between the two countries and he specifically wants your team to lead the security for this journey" said Tsunade.

Sakura's brows furrowed as she stepped up to question Tsunade. "But if this escort mission is so important, isn't it more efficient to hire higher ranking shinobi and have a larger team?"

"That's where matters become complicated" Tsunade answered softly before looking at the pink haired kunoichi "This is the princess" She handed Sakura the file and the rest of the team crowded around to look at it. Their eyes widened upon seeing the picture.

"Isn't that Sakura-chan?" Naruto pointed out, rubbing his eyes to see if there was anything wrong with his eyesight.

"No, under closer inspection you can tell that it's not Sakura" said Kakashi.

"The hair and eye color are slightly off"

Team Kakashi turned their head to the sudden remark thrown in by the person that was least likely to comment. Sasuke looked up from the picture, suddenly realizing that everyone had their eyes on him. His eyebrows creased as he looked back and forth his teammates "What?" he tried to brush off his uncharacteristic remark with feign obliviousness.

He felt a tense knot release in him when everyone looked back to the picture, dismissing his sudden comment.

"You are right, that isn't Sakura, but the daimyo's only daughter and it is absolutely vital that we get her past the borders" said Tsunade.

"You want Sakura to stand in for the princess and act as decoy for the enemies as we get the real princess past the borders" said Kakashi in a tone that clearly showed his reluctance. Sasuke frowned. "That would put Sakura in complete exposure to the enemy"

"Yes" Tsunade answered with a nod.

"Why can't we just use Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique)" Naruto added. For once, Sasuke admits that Naruto has a point.

"No, you'll be found out by the enemy almost immediately. Intel says that the rouge shinobi has a strong sensor type in their group. We can't take that risk, also, Sakura is the only one in the team with enough control of her chakra to suppress it under radar" Tsunade reasoned.

"Then we'll need a bigger team" Sasuke cut in.

"The daimyo specifically asked for your team only, he's rejected any other includes. I suspect he wants to keep this movement to be as quiet as possible" Tsunade answered.

"Then what's going to happen to Sakura if she gets caught?!" Naruto retorted loudly.

Tsunade's eyes snapped open angrily "Naruto, you should know by now that in the real world. Us Shinobi are considered as-"

"Expendable Weapons" a soft spoken voice finished the sentence. Everyone turned to the subject of this argument. Sakura's emerald eyes were hard and looked almost cold, she smiled and tilted her head "It's alright, Naruto. I'll be okay" he assured her concerned teammate.

Naruto was about to retort but Sasuke beat him to his words "If she gets herself capture, we'll just have to take her back" Sasuke said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He looked at Sakura from the corner of his eyes to see her astonished look then she smiled again.

"You will leave for the palace immediately. I'll be expecting your return." Tsunade looked at Sakura "All of you" she added.

…

After parting at the Hokage tower to return to their respective homes to pack their equipment, team Kakashi met up at the village gate like always to start their journey.

"Wow, I didn't expect there'd be anyone out there who looks like Sakura-chan" Naruto started to say as they begin the team begin their journey. After a pause, a sudden thought struck the hyperactive blonde. "I wonder if she has the same personality as Sakura-chan" he said more to himself.

Kakashi chuckled slightly as he looked back to his subordinates "Think she can replace our Sakura?" he said, jokingly. Immediately after hearing that, the two male genins glared hotly at Kakashi.

"That's not even a funny thing to say, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto snapped.

Kakashi laughed nervously "Alright, Naruto"

Sasuke himself looked rather peeved that Kakashi would even think of something as absurd as replacing Sakura. Instinctively his eyes trailed to look at his pink haired teammate, who didn't look the least affected by Kakashi's statement and instead was smiling with amusement as Naruto threw passionate reasons at Kakashi on why nobody could replace her.

Sasuke found himself nearly missing a step when she had suddenly turned to meet his eyes.

Only she could make him go clumsy like that. _Only her…_

…

A few hours were all it took for team Kakashi to reach the fire palace where the Daimyo of the Land of Fire resided.

As soon as they revealed themselves to be Konoha shinobi, they were instantly allowed in and greeted by a humble looking elderly man whom they assumed was one of the butlers of the household.

Naruto looked around with excitement dancing in his eyes as he marveled at all of the expensive looking antiques and designs that decorated the enormous house.

As they strode through the doors and onto the red carpet, they came to a halt when the grand stairs came into view.

"I thank you for answering and coming so quickly" they heard an unfamiliar voice say.

Team Kakashi looked up to see the daimyo in his expensive robes coming down the stairs with a somewhat graceful urgency.

"It is an honor to have your excellency request our team's assistance" Kakashi answered quickly and cutting Naruto off whom he knew was going to comment obnoxiously on the daimyo's flimsy appearance.

The daimyo turned and called behind his back "Rinko! The Konoha Shinobi are here!"

They heard the graced footsteps of traditional Geta (Traditional Japanese Footwear) and the team looked up the grand flight of stairs once again and saw the same girl in the photo walk down, carrying herself with the grace that a princess like her possessed. She wore a white kimono that was decorated with plum blossoms and her hair up in a bun. The first thing that had caught the girl's attention was the presence of the raven haired shinobi who looked her age, she suddenly felt warmth creeping up her neck and gathering in her cheeks.

'_What a good looking boy...'_

Her attention then fell onto the girl who was going to act as her stunt double. Sakura eyed the princess with clear, curious eyes. The princess raised her eyebrows at Sakura, trying to show off her superior status as she held her nose up in the air.

_'Foolish girl, do you think you can really act my place?'_

Once she reached the bottom of the stairs, she was examined by three pairs of eyes with Sasuke looking more interested in the interior of the house than their charge.

The princess, however had her eyes glued to Sasuke for her entire walk down the stairs. "It's a pleasure to meet you" she said more to Sasuke than everyone else. As soon as she opened her mouth, her voice proved to be of a higher pitch than Sakura and something about her tone just made her sound naturally snobby.

Her desperate attempts to meet Sasuke's eyes were denied when she turned and nearly kissed Naruto from the proximity of their faces. She yelped and took an ungraceful step back "What are you doing?!" her pitchy voice snapped at Naruto.

"Hm... now that I look at you from up close. Sakura-chan is definitely cuter" Naruto stated bluntly.

The blood drained from everyone's faces, except Sakura who was still had no skills in social etiquette. The daimyo's daughter huffed and stomped her foot, appalled at Naruto's statement. "How dare you compare me to that..." Rinko looked at Sakura in disgust "Commoner" she spat.

Sakura blinked then smiled, not quite sure how was she supposed to react to that.

"Hey! Don't talk about Sakura-chan like-" the rest of Naruto's words were muffled by Kakashi as the jounin gave a nervous laugh to lighten the tension.

"I'm really sorry about that, our Naruto doesn't have a conscience" Kakashi said.

The daimyo looked miffed that his daughter had just been rudely seconded against Sakura. "See that he doesn't let anything else slip up" the daimyo said, obviously looking down on Naruto then his gaze turned to Sakura "My daughter is a delicate creature, one which shouldn't associate with barbarians. But I was given no choice" he said with feign sadness.

Kakashi forced Naruto's head down in a bow as he did himself "Of course, Daimyo-sama"

"The board is already gather for strategic planning, I've prepared a room for the genins. Only Hatake Kakashi is needed" the Daimyo stated bluntly.

Kakashi released Naruto "Of course" Kakashi replied gracefully then turned to his genin.

"Sakura, you're in charge while I'm gone. Make sure the boys don't destroy anything, alright?" Kakashi said, ruffling Sakura's hair.

Sakura nodded with a smile before Kakashi trailed after the daimyo and his daughter.

"Please follow" they heard one of the servants say and did as they were told. They were pretty sure they'd get lost in the palace if they weren't careful.

It was still noon and the three genin were left in the room and told to stay put like they children being dropped off at a nursery. The three stepped into the room with caution, their eyes scanning their surrounding before they heard the paper door slide to a close behind them.

Naruto was first to accept the new environment and he did so by rolling onto the tatami mats. "That brat is so not Sakura-chan" he groaned. Sakura cocked her head to the side "Of course she's not me, I'm right here" she said.

Naruto lifted his head and tried to think of a way to explain what he meant to Sakura but instead of coming up with a solution he ended up grinning "I guess you're right, Sakura-chan" he chuckled.

"Dobe" Sasuke muttered under his breath.

Naruto's eye twitched but he didn't move from the floor.

Sasuke moved to a corner and was determined to stay sat there until they were called. Sakura, however, unlike her male teammates, she was pacing the floor of the tatami mats with a look of concentration on her face.

And soon, both males became very aware of Sakura's soft footsteps on the mats as she paced. "What are you doing? Sakura-chan" Naruto finally asked.

"Who do you think did it?" Sakura asked abruptly, still pacing.

"Did what?" Naruto questioned.

"The kidnappings, it doesn't seem to add up." Sakura's brows furrowed further.

Naruto shrugged "Bad shinobi? Possibly" the blonde decided that he wasn't interested and laid his head back down to the tatami.

"I want to go take a look at the town" Sakura suddenly concluded.

One of Sasuke's eye snapped open, he peek at Sakura and realized that she was serious. "We were told to stay put" Sasuke argued.

"I'll be real quick" Sakura pulled a cloak from her pack and swung it on and before Sasuke could get up to stop her, she was gone. Sasuke slumped back down to his corner with a sigh, he was about to go back to meditating when he caught Naruto lying on his stomach and staring at him.

"Staring is a gross hobby, dobe" Sasuke snapped grumpily.

Naruto's eyes narrowed at the Uchiha "You know, you always seem extra pissy whenever Sakura-chan's not here" Naruto stated matter-of-factly. Sasuke glared at him and Naruto withdrew, rolling back onto his back and closed his eyes.

...

Sakura stepped lightly, keeping herself on alert for anyone who might cross her path. Lowering her head as to be discreet, however as she rounded a corner, she was met with the sight of an expensive silk kimono and a loud gasp.

"You!"

Sakura raised her head to meet a familiar pair of dull green eyes before she quickly bowed her head to a respectful angle. "My apologies, hime" she said softly but firmly. She snuck a peek up at the princess and her highness did not seem pleased with her.

"Where do you think you're going, Sakura-_san"_ Rinko asked, saying the suffix in a spiteful manner.

"I wanted to go into town and investigate on something" Sakura said, her eyes fixated on the floorboards at Rinko's feet.

"Where's the handsome raven-haired boy?"

Sakura blinked and lifted her head to look at Rinko, tilting her head to the side slightly "Eh?"

Rinko rolled her eyes and clicked her tongue "The raven-haired boy on your team, is he in the room?" Rinko repeated before muttering something about incompetent kunoichis. Sakura took a moment before realizing that Rinko was referring to Sasuke as he was the only one in her team with raven hair and she had to admit that he was rather handsome.

"You mean Sasuke? He's in, he's resting now" she said, secretly hoping that the princess wasn't going to bother her teammates.

She saw the smirk creeping onto the girl's lips before Rinko roughly pushed past her without so much as sparing another look at Sakura. Sakura had a feeling that she was going to go and confront her tired teammates, she opened her mouth to try and say something but closed it back when she realized that she's wasted enough time, she needed confirmation and she can only do so if she goes into town.

To her, the concept of a town seemed quite exciting to her, with people standing outside their shops and yelling out promotions to attract customers. Everyone was busy and the streets were bustling with people, Sakura kept a low profile with the cloak that she had packed in her back earlier but that didn't stop her from looking around and admiring the foreign environment. Then as she passed by a bookstore, there was a sample of today's newspaper hung outside the shop and the head title read:

GOVERNMENT OF LAND OF WATER GET'S KIDNAPPED,

KIDNAPPERS DEMAND RANSOM AND DECLARE THEMSELVES AS SUNA SHINOBI

Sakura thought it was weird, didn't the rouge ninjas before declare themselves as Kumo-nin? Her brows furrowed as she contemplated the findings but shook her head as she couldn't find a way to link, her body suddenly tensed as she detected chakra movement outside the city borders and for a chakra to be this active in a civilian area was too suspicious.

Fixing her hood to make sure it's firmly over her head, she picked her the speed of her steps and when she was sure she was far enough from the excitement, she dashed straight for the thick covers of the trees where she had detected the chakra signature.

A dark figure suddenly appeared in the shadows of the trees behind the bushes, Sakura gasped and skid to a stop as the figure walked with obvious difficulty. He swayed from side to side, moving closer to her with each sway. He had just managed to step out of the shadows before he fell forward. Instincts took over as she made a mad dash for the man's fallen body, first she checked his vitals and then his body for fatal wounds.

He was breathing, but just barely. The stranger's heartbeats were slowing and his body had been beating to near death. The soil beneath him had began to stain red, the sight of blood had forced Sakura to fight back the looming shadow that threatened to take over her mind. She couldn't help this man on her own, she needed to find help. She was about to call for help when she felt a rather wet hand wrap around her wrist.

She looked at her hand and found a bloodied hand holding her hand, albeit limply. The man was conscious, that was a good sign. But she frowned when she saw that the light in his half open eyes were going out. "You're going to be alright" she told him and turned away to call for help but a small tug on her wrist made her look back to bloody man. He beckoned her to come closer.

Sakura leaned over, putting her ear next to his mouth he whispered something into her ear.

Her eyes widened and her heart constricted. If what this man was saying were true then this mission was about to get a lot bigger. She turned her head to face the man, she had questions that she needed him to answer but a wave of panic washed through her as she found that the hand that held her wrist no longer held any force and she couldn't sense his chakra anymore.

He was gone.

Sakura promptly lost it.

"Someone! Anyone! There is a fatally injured man here! Help! Please, somebody help!"

...

Sasuke promptly jolted awake, realizing that he had someone fallen asleep in a sitting position in the corner he sat in. He shifted uncomfortably and glanced at the door, half expecting Sakura to come in but he leaned back dejectedly when she didn't show. His brows frowned, trying to figure the sudden feeling in his gut that told him something had happened with Sakura. He promptly shooed away his concerns when he heard movement next to him.

His eyes widened as he bolted to his feet, taking a defensive stance as he glared at the perpetrator but allowed his muscles to relax when his mind identified the intruder as their charge. He sighed and slipped his kunai back into its holster.

"What do you want?" he asked as politely as his mood allowed him to.

_You know, you always seem pissy whenever Sakura-chan's not here._

Naruto's previous statement echoed in his mind. Was it true? Was he really pissy whenever there was a lack of Sakura's presence around him? No, no, that can't be. He was always pissy, whether or not Sakura was there had nothing to do with his mood.

Suddenly he felt a tingling warmth wrap itself around his arm and it had just registered in his mind that the princess had been rambling on and on about something that didn't actually concern him and his loud thinking tuned her out. He blinked a few times and looked at the fawning girl before he shifted uncomfortably, trying to get away but found that he had been cornered. He silently cursed himself for landing himself in this situation.

The princess seemed to have noticed his discomfort but chose to take it positively, she giggled like a schoolgirl before hugging his arm closer to her "There's no need to be shy, I just want to be friends"

Sasuke shut his eyes and took a deep breath.

...

Kakashi stared at the map of the forest with a look of boredom as he listened to the frantic advisors throw plan after plan at him. He shut his only exposed eye and breath out, all of the plans they were suggesting to him required them to leave Sakura unguarded as she takes on all of the attention of the rogue nin, it was as if they saw her as a bone to be thrown into the dog pit and left there.

He was about to _politely_ reject their strategies because there was no way in hell were they going to make him throw his subordinate into the shark pit without protection.

"With all due respect, royal tactician, but I have to-"

He did not expect his most well behaved student to come barging into the grand meeting room- covered in bloodstains. The royal guards were surrounding her, their spears pointed at her neck as she stood with a hard eyed expression, looking almost coldly at Kakashi. The silver haired jounin's eyes widened slightly at the intensity of her gaze.

"Sakura... what happened?" he asked, walking towards her.

The guards lowered their weapons and allowed her to proceed. Sakura's heaving shoulders told her sensei that she had been running. Her left cheek had been smudged with blood, her fingers were caked with dried blood and smudges peppered her skin. "This isn't just a simple kidnapping, Kakashi-sensei" she said in a grave tone.

Kakashi glanced back at the table of worried, curious men. "Go get clean up first, Sakura" he told her softly. He could tell that whatever she had seen had shaken her up and the blood was probably getting in the way of her sanity. Sakura's eyes widened at her teacher's suggestion, was he just going to brush her off like this? Did he not believe her? She looked shocked, if not slightly insulted. She protested "But this is important, Kakashi-sensei! The five nations are in danger!"

Kakashi gave her a gentle look "Go wash up, Sakura. After that, round up the boys and bring them here to discuss new strategies" he told her and beckoned her to step outside. Sakura looked reluctant but she knew he meant well. She knew that the death of that man had affected her more than she wanted to admit but she wasn't about to let that set her back, she just couldn't shake the cold, helpless feeling from her system.

With slump shoulders, Sakura walked back to the room that they had been given. On the way back, she found that without the distraction of reporting in to Kakashi, her mind had been clouded with the last moments of the dying stranger. The overflowing blood and the gurgling of his words next to her ear aroused unwanted memories within her, she had suddenly been dragged back to her time in the dark. The sounds of her sobs suddenly filled her ears as her footsteps sped up.

The corridors were suddenly felt so dark and small, she took a sharp intake of breath before she broke off into a sprint across the halls. Her frantic eyes searched for an exit, an escape, anything. She rounded the corner that would lead her to the room that held her teammates._ Almost there._

She stopped after she made the corner because she saw him, his annoyed expression as he stepped out of the room. She didn't give her brain the time to register the minor details before she ran up to him and buried her face into his chest, relishing the feeling of security.

...

Sasuke had just escaped from the pushy princess's clutches before he heard the echo of footsteps growing louder and before he knew it, his pink haired teammate had rounded the corner and looked at him, wide eyed and panting. But that wasn't what scared him, _she was covered in blood._ His first thought was to panic at the fact that she had gotten hurt but then he realized that with even with a large amount of blood dried on her, she didn't sport any open wounds.

Her eyes were cold and empty and her hair fell messily over her now dulled green eyes, he could see that her figure was trembling and her breathing was irregular. When he tried to think of all the possible scenarios that could've ended her up in that state, he got nothing. He hadn't seen her look this hostile since their first meeting and he was beginning to worry about what she was going to do.

He opened his mouth to comment on her disheveled appearance "Sakura what-" but before he could finish, a flurry of pink shot at him initially he had expected her to attack him as it wouldn't have been very surprisingly if she did. As he brought one of his leg back a step to go into a defensive stance, he fought something warm against his front. He blinked a few times before looking down at the shivering head of pink buried in his chest. Her small fingers clutching the front of his shirt as she nuzzled further into it.

The warmth of her breath seeped through his shirt, alerting him of her erratic breathing before he wrapped his arms almost meekly around her, not quite sure if that's the right thing to do. Her panting paused for a moment and he heard her swallow before letting out a breath.

He heard the paper door slide open with a loud _thunk_ before he heard the heavy footsteps of whom he would assume to be their charge. He barely had time to react when a hand reached out to grab Sakura's shoulder but before he could do anything, Sakura jerked away from the hand and snarled with a sudden ferocity "Don't touch me!" her eyes flashed with and a warning. Her hands switched to hold Sasuke by his sleeve as she partially hid herself behind him

Rinko stood there with her hand in the air, stunned with fear from the ferocity that had radiated from her pink haired doppelganger. Sakura's shoulders rose and fell with desperation, it took awhile before her eyes lost their fierce glow and she seemed to have comprehended what she had just done. She swallowed as a look of weariness was replaced in her eyes

"My apologies, hime" she said, hoarsely.

Shakily, she released the fabric of Sasuke's shirt and just as she was about to pull her hand back, Sasuke reached out to grab hers. "Go get cleaned up, Sakura" he told her. Sasuke's finger tightened around her hand as he led her into the room and past the still snoring Naruto.

He promptly shoved her into the bathroom and shut the door. "If I don't hear the water running in 10 seconds, I'm going in there to make sure that you get cleaned up" Sasuke said sternly.

There was a pause as he waited for her to say something before he would begin counting.

"Thank you"

His eyes widened at the softness of her voice it was almost a whisper but his heightened shinobi senses picked it up through the door. He blinked a few times, pulling himself out of his trance and it was then he could hear the running of water and only then did he allow himself to turn his attention away.

He turned around to a thoroughly miffed version of Sakura. The Daimyo's daughter had her cheeks slightly puffed up as she glared at Sasuke. "What are your feelings for that girl?" she asked in a tone that edged towards being rude. Sasuke immediately shifted his attention away from the girl and proceeded to walk towards Sakura's isolated pack. He picked it up and brought it towards the bathroom door and left it at the doorstep so that Sakura could get to it with ease.

"Are you even listening to me?" she snapped loudly, jerking Naruto back to consciousness. The blonde snorted and rubbed his eyes sleepily "What's going on? Are we leaving yet?" His half open eyes looking around the room and immediately he could feel the tension between Sasuke and Rinko. "Whatcha guys doing?" he chose to ask.

Sasuke's expression remained neutral as he looked at the princess with a cold reflection in his eyes as if challenging her anger. "I asked you what does that brat mean to you?" she screamed, making Naruto flinch at the sharp pitch of her voice.

Rinko's shoulders rose and fell slowly as annoyance grew in her eyes she huffed and crossed her arms "Fine, I'll just have to tell Otou-sama that she isn't capable of fulfilling her role" she said smugly, Sasuke still refused to react, she glanced at the Uchiha the smirked "One word from my father and her life as a shinobi will be over" she said.

Sasuke's eyes flashed red as his annoyance with the Sakura imitation reached its peak. How dare she threaten Sakura like that.

"What do you mean by that?" Naruto snapped, suddenly alarmed by Rinko's threat. "Does that mean that we can't do missions with Sakura-chan anymore?" he demanded, leaping to his feet. Rinko looked at Naruto then back at Sasuke, holding the smug look.

"You heard him, you won't be able to do missions with your precious Sakura-chan anymore once word gets out to my father that she is a faulty shinobi" she said, her tone laced with disgust as she mentioned Sakura. Something dangerous flashed in Sasuke's eyes for a moment that Rinko didn't manage to catch. Little did the spoiled princess know that if she takes one more step further in annoying Sasuke, he was going to make her regret everything.

"Sakura-chan is not faulty! She's a great shinobi!" Naruto yelled.

Rinko rolled her eyes and scoffed "I'm sure she's just as useless as they come" with that, she snapped the last thread of restraint the two boys had against raising a hand against the princess. However she didn't flinch at their offensive movements against her and instead she merely raised a hand "Before you try to harm me, let me remind you that you are hired by my father's money which ultimately entitles you against harming me" she stated with a smug smile.

Sasuke and Naruto froze, Sasuke didn't bother to mask his anger now and was openly glaring at Rinko, but she merely smiled "Maybe I should ask Otou-san to hire you to protect me for the rest of my life" she said rather happily as she circled Sasuke's tense form and then stopped right in front of his face, tracing his jaw line as she said "You will be mine and only mine, all it takes is just a word from my father" she nearly laughed there and then had it not been for a sudden interruption that resonated from bathroom.

"You can't take Sasuke away!"

Every head in the room turned to face Sakura whom was dressed only in a towel, her hair clung to her cheeks as droplets of water dripped from the tips of her hair. Her eyes holding a look of hopelessness as she clutched the towel to herself.

The princess eyed her from head to toe with disgust before a sinister smile spread across her face "Why can't I? Is there some reason why I shouldn't just take him away from you? Do you think you can give him a better life than me, who is a daughter from a prestigious family?"

Sakura looked taken aback for a moment before she quickly regained herself "He's one of my important teammates, I don't want him to leave Team Kakashi" she ended up mumbling softly. Sasuke blinked, surprised by her sudden heartfelt confession.

"Can you stop me?" Rinko asked smugly.

Sakura inhaled, looking as if she would break out in tears but before anyone could say anything, she brought her head down and bowed. "Please" she said "I beg of you" Sakura added softly.

Rinko looked flabbergasted as she struggled to get words out of her mouth, what could she do when her opponent had just surrendered herself completely. Nothing. Exactly.

Sakura held her position despite the silence resonating in the room, she didn't dare raise her head, afraid that they'd see her helpless expression. She simply didn't know what to do and she had nothing to give to a girl who had everything, all that was left was her dignity and she had so boldly thrown it at her. She was out of ideas.

She felt a towel being dropped on her head, her muscles relaxed a little before she pulled herself up right to look at Sasuke through the makeshift hood of the towel. "You're going to catch a cold" he told her. She blinked at him but didn't react otherwise. Sasuke clicked his tongue and reached for her head, ruffling her hair with the towel.

After awhile, she spoke. "Sasuke, I-"

"Go get dressed" he turned her around and urged her back into the bathroom. His eyes narrowed in on the scar on her back that seemed like part of a much larger whipping scar she took a step into bathroom before turning around "But Sasuke, you-" the words seemed to have died in her mouth when she looked at Sasuke, her heart began pounding wildly against her ribcage as she struggled to form words on her tongue. He smirked at her before urging her pack into her hands

"I'm not going anywhere" he promised and with that he step out of the bathroom and shut the door but not before leaving a message "Get dressed, Sakura. I mean it" he told her and then the door clicked shut.

Sasuke turned his attention back to the girl, their eyes met briefly before he bluntly ignored her and turned the other way and attempted to return to his corner before Rinko stepped in between him. Naruto watched with a curious interest to see how Sasuke would react to the pushy princess. "You know your threats aren't going to work" he said, his eyebrow raised.

The princess hung her head "Why can't it be me? We have the same face, we're the same height and I can change myself so I'll act just like her" her voice wavered slightly, biting her lip so that she could hold back the tears of frustration.

Sasuke walked past her coldly "You'll never be Sakura"

...

The royal tactician rubbed his chin "So let me get this straight, you think that the kidnappers are trying to set up a war between the five countries by capturing royal representatives and declaring themselves as the opposition"

Kakashi nodded "That's what one of my subordinates has informed me after a visit to the main city, we believe we'll need to take necessary precaution to prevent the capture of Rinko-hime as well as apprehend the unknown shinobi"

"Kakashi-san" the tactician sighed exasperatedly "You can't expect us to get sidetracked by information given by a dead person in which only your genin underling had spoken too, she is unreliable. Our main goal is to get Rinko-sama past the borders. Nothing more, you were hired for it. Know your place, shinobi" the tactician was about to walk off but he froze and swallowed at the ominously bright smile in Kakashi's eye. Although Kakashi didn't look like it but the civilian strategist could feel a murderous intent radiating from Kakashi that glue him to the floor.

"My _subordinate_ had suffered a great deal of mental trauma just to learn about this conspiracy, she may not ever forget the face of that deceased man. He passed away as she could only watch as he dies. The only reason that we now have this Intel, is because Sakura is a strong girl. Not only has she provided information but she has volunteered herself to act as both a decoy and a spy" Kakashi ended with a glare. The tactician wet his lips and swallowed "S-So I take it that you would need our as-assistance?"

Kakashi flashed him another bright smile "It's nothing too hard for civilian soldiers to handle"

…

The next day…

Kakashi stepped into the room where his team had been assigned to, Sakura was already waiting for him by the door, looking up at him with expectant eyes. He clasped his hands together and began to debrief them.

"Right so just to go through the plan one more time so there would be no mistakes" Kakashi looked pointedly at Naruto. "Sakura and Rinko-hime will go by different carriages, that's the plan" Kakashi looked over to the two males "Naruto and Sasuke will escort the princess, and to make them believe that Sakura's carriage is real, I want Naruto to get in the carriage with the princess, so once the enemy senses your chakra, they will think that the imposter's in that carriage" Kakashi

Naruto groaned "You've been through the plan over a thousand times already, Kakashi-sensei. We get it; we basically attract the enemy's attention to make them go after Sakura-chan's carriage, right? Piece of cake." Naruto snorted. "It won't be a piece of cake if you're going to screw up, loser" Sasuke added.

Naruto shot him a glare "I'm not going to screw up! How would we know that _you_ aren't going to be the one to screw this up?" Naruto challenged. Sasuke opened his mouth to say something but their silver haired sensei cut in "We _cannot_ afford to make mistakes in this mission" he said, with a sudden tone of severe seriousness.

They rarely see this side of their teacher, only in the more dire of situations. Sasuke understood then that there was probably something more to this mission than what their teacher was telling them. He glanced at Sakura with suspicion, she seemed quite restless ever since her trip to the main town.

The tension in the air had been relieved when a lady servant slid the paper door open and gave a low bow. "I apologize for the intrusion but Sakura-sama needs to come with me for her kimono fitting" she said.

Sakura stepped out meekly and offered her teammates a small wave before following the servant away. Naruto's surprised look had been replaced with a look of utter excitement "I can't wait to see what Sakura-chan looks like in a kimono" he bounced on his feet a little as he grinned cheekily.

Immediately after Naruto had mentioned that, Sasuke found his eyes glancing at the door that Sakura had just stepped through, suddenly curious.

…

It took a while before someone came to get them, informing them that they had finished dressing up their teammate and they were ready to depart.

Naruto speed walked ahead, eager to take a look at Sakura whereas Sasuke lingered behind Kakashi, although he was equally as curious as his blonde teammate. He watched as Naruto rounded the last corner before they would end up in the lobby of the mansion. However he became really worried when he didn't hear anything more from his knucklehead of a teammate.

He felt his legs moving faster and he now moved to walk next to his teacher. He rounded the corner a few milliseconds before his silver haired teacher and immediately had the wind knocked out of him.

_She was beautiful. _

Her long pink hair had been styled and tied in a low side ponytail and held together with an expensive looking cherry blossom hair tie. Flowers of different kinds were slipped all over her hair, brightening up and emphasizing all her features. Her kimono was white with a pink gradient on the sleeves and mid-section, her overall look was completely with mint green haori draped on her shoulders.

She noticed the look he was giving her and offered him an achingly beautiful smile. Sasuke's heart constricted for a moment, realizing that he had been rendered speechless by looking at her. He mentally punched himself and then pulled himself together. She gave him a little twirl and said something in which Sasuke's brain could not catch at the moment.

"How do I look?" He was suddenly dragged painfully back into reality and everything seemed to register in his head all at once.

She tilted her head to the side and gave him an expectant look. It was then that he realized that—she was standing right in front of him.

He blinked.

"I-" he cleared his throat. "Hn. You look fine." He said in the most monotonous voice he could muster and then turned away before he began ogling at her like a freak.

"You look amazing, Sakura-chan!" he heard his other teammate say.

Sakura chuckled a little and lifted her arms to form a cross, as if presenting herself to Naruto. "You think so?" Sasuke caught her smile from the corner of his eye.

Their teacher lifted his attention from his orange book and raised his eyebrows. "Looks great on you" was all he said before his attention fell back to the god forsaken book.

By now, Sakura was probably beaming with pride from all the comments her teammates offered her. She walked awkwardly over to her isolated weapons pouch and pack. "Looks like I can't take these in with me, huh" she said, sounding slightly dejected. Sasuke walked over to the table to stand next to her, examining her choices. He reached out to pick up the holster in which he knew, contained her precious red string kunai.

He held it out for her to take "You can secure this around your thigh, for emergencies" he said.

Sakura looked at the holster then offered him a grateful smile "You're right, Sasuke" she took it from his hand and immediately bunched up her kimono skirt up to her thigh so she could secure the holster there. However she gave Sasuke no warning of her actions and he had to forcefully look away from her leg, he shoved his hands back into his pockets and walked away but he could feel his ears heating up.

They were briefly joined by the daimyo and the real princesses. Rinko had her eyes glued to the floor the entire time the two parties were together. As the daimyo discussed some last minute things with Kakashi, she remained silent— almost as if she was admitting defeat.

Soon, two identical carriages pulled up in front of the mansion and Rinko and Sakura boarded it, Sakura sealing up her chakra as she did so.

"Sakura, can you hear me?" she heard her teacher's voice through the radio earpiece plugged in her ear. "Loud and clear, sensei" she replied softly and cautiously as she sat down. "Good, stay sharp Sakura." He said.

Security was tight for the entire trip and everyone felt restless, as in any moment now they were going to be attacked and the plan has to be executed with deadly accuracy. They were up against highly trained ninja, one small slip up and they would take the right carriage. Sakura toned her chakra down till she was well under the radar and kept it circulating at a steady pace. She was completely blind now, she didn't dare reach out her chakra to check for presence and she knew that if she was caught now, she would not have the reflex to cast a jutsu to defend herself.

She had to trust her teammates.

She let out a steady breath before the carriage jerked to a sudden stop and she could hear the frantic whinny of the horses. She held a steady grasp on her chakra, forbidding it from acting up and waited patiently for her own abduction.

"Sakura" the radio in her ear buzzed to life. "Sensei" she breathed softly, her eyes glancing back and forth the two windows of her carriage, expecting someone to come through at any moment.

"They've fallen for it."

As if on cue, something heavy landed on her carriage and jerked it. She gasped when her carriage door had been ripped cleanly off its hinges. A masked face stuck into the opening and looked at her, she sank back into the seat to put on a show of fear for the rogue-nin. Then she was roughly grabbed around the waist and yanked out of the carriage.

The air left her lungs when she slammed into the man's shoulder and hung there. She gasped and squirmed in the man's grasp as she partially took note of the fights that went on as the man leap up to the trees. Kakashi was completely occupied by two aggressive shinobi that threw their attacks relentlessly at him.

For a moment, Sakura felt completely helpless against her enemy. Then she quickly calmed herself down by reminding herself of her role. She struggled half-heartedly as she felt herself moving further and further away from her teammates. She mentally prepared herself to be thrown into captivity and prayed that her teammates would be able to find her along with the rest of the abducted royalty.

…

When the boys finally reached the end of the border, Naruto exited Rinko's carriage and then carefully closed the door. "See ya, princess" he grinned and waved at her. Rinko stuck her head out of the window and thanked them almost shyly. Her gaze suddenly hardened when she regarded Sasuke. "She's been taken by the rogue-nin, you know?"

It took a moment for Sasuke to realize that she was talking about Sakura. He had already prepared himself to be told of Sakura's abduction and he trusted her to be able to take care of herself. He dismissed the princess.

"She's not planning to defend herself, they're using her as a link to the other abducted royals" she said.

Sasuke's eyes widened fractionally.

"What do you mean, as a link" Naruto snapped.

Rinko was looking a little desperate now. "I heard my father talking to your superior about this plan. If they find out that she is a fake, the rogues are going to kill her"

Naruto and Sasuke wasted no time in speeding off back to their regrouping point— they were going to kill Kakashi.

But by the time they had reached the meeting point, it was as they have feared. Sakura was nowhere to be found and Kakashi looked at them with an annoyingly leisure look, as if one of his subordinate had _not _been taken. "Kakashi!" Sasuke snarled, grabbing his teacher by the front and pulling him down to his level.

"Did you plan this?" he snapped angrily, his sharingan had subconsciously been activated.

Kakashi simply looked mildly amused.

Calmly reaching for the clenched fingers that were currently holding him in place, Kakashi peeled Sasuke's finger off and regarded both the males coolly.

"Where's Sakura-chan!" Naruto snapped.

"Sakura discovered something rather disturbing during her trip to the main town. The royals that were abducted throughout the nation are being used as a war starter. They're going around different countries and announcing themselves as shinobi from a different origin on each country in hopes of starting a blind war between the countries" their teacher explained calmly.

"So what? You just threw her into the hands of the enemy?" Sasuke snapped angrily "You couldn't think of anything else?" his tone was acid.

The look in Kakashi's eyes darkened "Sakura herself stepped up and volunteer this plan to the daimyo. I'm sure you've seen the state in which she returned in after her trip to the main town" Kakashi reasoned.

Sasuke's eyes widened just a fraction.

How could he forget? The traumatized look in her eyes and the waves of shudder that pulsed through her body as she buried her face in his chest, the feel of her small body was still engraved in his mind.

"She specifically told me not to inform you two of her sacrificial plan because she knew how you guys worry. One mistake and the entire plan would crumble" Kakashi said.

Sasuke hated it. The feeling of helplessness—more than anything else. He hated how Sakura had no faith in them. Sasuke's hands curled into fists before he landed a sharp punch into the trunk of the tree they stood beneath. "You stupid girl…!"

Naruto looked surprised "Sasuke… you…" he blinked, at a loss for words.

Kakashi ruffled both their hairs "I'll let you guys lecture her for as long as you want later, but right now. We've got an imposter princess to track down"

* * *

**So how was it? I know that it's a cliffy but the chapter was way too long to be left unclipped XD**

**Random question time!**

**What do you think would be a good name for Hinata and Naruto's future child? **


	11. Damsel in Distress

**HEY BISHES I FEEL GENEROUS TODAY! So here's another chapter! -throws computer at you- ENJOY!**

* * *

**Damsel in Distress**

Kakashi pulled out a palm sized tracker from his pack with a pixelated radar on the screen. Within the radar was a little dot in which they assumed to be Sakura. "They're moving fast, we're going to have to hurry"

The jounin leapt up onto the branches and he didn't need to look back to know that the two genins were following closely behind him.

…

Sakura felt lightheaded and groggy from the drug that they had injected in her halfway through their travel. Her mouth felt dry and she felt like she was suspending in mid-air. _Just what kind of drug was that! _She managed to calm herself down once she felt that her chakra was still levelled under radar.

Even though most parts of her body felt numb, she could still feel the earpiece lodged in her ear which was a good— that meant that her team could still track her down. She just hoped that Naruto and Sasuke weren't too angry at her.

She dared herself to sneak a peek but that didn't do her much good as all she could see was black.

"Aniki, we're brought the daimyo's daughter" a slimy voice said.

She could hear footsteps approaching and she quickly shut her eyes and kept her breathing as levelled as much as she could. "She's feinting unconsciousness" She refrained from gasping when she felt her head being pulled up by her hair.

Her wide jade eyes stared helplessly into the sinister silver eyes of whom she assumed was the ring leader of the rogue nin. He looked even more despicable than what she imagined him to be. His stone grey hair was bunched up into a ponytail as he wore a headband that bore the symbol of Iwagakure with slash through it.

He flashed a wicked grin at her before his eyes darkened and she found herself ripped from the shoulder of the man who carried her the entire way and thrown harshly to the ground. "She's a shinobi!" the man shrieked.

"But that's impossible! I felt no chakra from her!" the slimier and skinny looking nin said defensively as he joined the silver eyed man's side. They both looked down at her fallen form as she struggled to push herself off the ground with her trembling muscles.

Her breaths were shallow and she couldn't muster any strength at all. She was dead; she was definitely going to die now. She was tugged up to the ugly face of the stone haired ring leader by the front of her kimono. Her hair, now dishevelled and falling over her eyes as she looked fearfully at her captor, she felt a shiver as a sinister grin nearly split the man's face in half.

"No wonder you looked so familiar" he began, his fingers traced down her cheek. She held her breath as she felt his overgrown fingernails threatened to cut a hole in her face. "You're the Haruno girl that escaped from Iwagakure's underground assassin training months ago" he chuckled.

"Oh this is just great, they are going to pay handsomely for your return" he said before throwing her over his shoulder. "But before we give you back, let's see what you can tell us about konoha, shall we?" another dark chuckle escaped the man.

"Oohh, aniki you are such a schemer" the slimy man from before said nervously as he nodded. It was obvious to Sakura that he was afraid of this man. If his own allies feared him then she didn't even want to think of what kind of man he really is.

All she could do was silently pray that he wouldn't discover the radio in her ear.

…

"Kakashi-sensei, aren't we there yet?" Naruto snapped impatiently

"Naruto, that is the 5th time you're asking that question, the answer does just change if you ask between 5 minute intervals" Kakashi snapped, Sasuke could tell he was annoyed with the long travelling time as well; they were all worried about Sakura.

The longer they take to reach her, the more danger she's in.

…

The shackles were too tight.

As soon as she felt the metal clamping around her wrist, she knew that her chakra was sealed. She glanced down at the manacles and indeed there was a seal stuck on the surface of the metal. She also realized that they were shackled to a wall. _Great, _her movement was also limited as well. If she doesn't think of a way to get out of the corner, she's really going to be in danger.

"Now then, shall we get started?" the sinister tone of her captor sent off warning bells in her instincts.

She took a step back only to be backed off into a wall. The shackles made a jingle as her hand twitched towards the weapon strapped onto her leg but she knew it would take far too long to try and retrieve it under the layers and layers of her kimono. Hell she could hardly move with it.

She noticed the dark twinkle in her captor's eyes and before she realized it, he had seized the hand that twitched and pinned it to the wall with a kunai through her palm. She yelped and her arm tensed under the sudden spike of pain. Sucking in air through her clenched teeth, she refused to whimper or respond anymore.

It would only provide him sadistic satisfaction.

_Ah… I can feel the blood running down my arm—it hurts._

He pulled out another kunai but by that time, Sakura had steeled her nerves and her eyes no longer bore any emotions. It was like someone else had taken over.

The silver eyed man tapped the tip of the kunai on Sakura's cheek. "Hm… you certainly are an iwa-assassin" the man chuckled and then ran the blade down the skirt of Sakura's kimono. Tearing through it like butter. He made a thin and shallow cut down Sakura's thigh as he did so.

However Sakura didn't so much as flinch.

"Tell me, how much does Konoha know about our humble band of rogues? Hmm?"

She remained silent. The stony haired man's eye twitched. He drew another kunai and this time he stabbed it deep into Sakura's shoulder. The faintest of crease appeared between Sakura's brows for less than a second before it was easily masked once again.

"Every time you refuse to answer me, I am going to stick a kunai in you, understand?"

Sakura remained still.

The captor growled and jammed his fist into her stomach. Sakura bent forward slight and coughed and wheezed. "Why don't you try calling for your teammates? Beg for mercy, do something you freak!" the captor stabbed the kunai he was holding into her one of her thighs. Her balance faltered but she quickly shifted her weight onto her other leg

She was beginning to feel the effects of blood loss, her lungs felt heavy and dark spot danced tantalizingly in her vision. The captor could see that she was already on her limit and smirked.

Her eyes were empty, however she was breaking out in cold sweat, her body was beginning to tremble and her breath was harsh and strained. It won't be long before he could get her to speak.

Sakura held in her voice, she wanted to scream for help and for someone to come and save her but she didn't—what was the point?

_I have long since given up on calling for help, because no one would come for me. Why would they? But just this once, I want to believe that I'm wanted. I want to tell them that I'm here. _

_Someone please notice me…_

Sakura opened her mouth as if preparing to speak. The captor perked up "Oh? Finally feel like talking?"

Her throat was tight and it hurt as she tried to get the words out. _"Help…"_

"Hah?"

The yelling from outside the door was what threw the stony haired man off his throne of arrogance to finally notice what was going on in his base. The wooden door was shattered to pieces and a flurry of silver was all he saw before he was thrown up against the wall and pinned in place by a menacing force.

Kakashi's sharingan eye spun dangerously as he glared at the ring leader.

Sasuke and Naruto soon appeared through the wall, their blood froze when they saw what had become of their teammate. "Sakura-chan!" "Sakura…!"

The devastating condition she was in when they found her made their blood boil in frustration. Her right hand was pinned onto the wall above her, her kimono was torn up, her left thigh was stabbed and a kunai had been lodged in her left shoulder. The life in her eyes had vanished and she looked barely alive, hell her own blood was pooling at her feet. How could anyone do such a thing? Why didn't they arrive sooner? Why didn't they stop her?

Kakashi flung the keys for the manacles at Naruto without breaking eye contact with the stony haired man. Naruto unlocked the shackles Sakura immediately and Sasuke pulled the kunai out of the wall as swiftly and as painlessly as possible. Immediately Sakura fell against him.

Her breathing was shallow and her face was contorted with pain. A sheen of sweat coated her forehead as she whimpered softly in Sasuke's hold. "Sakura…" Sasuke breathed nervously as he lowered her to the ground, he had no idea what to do to in order to provide her with any sort of comfort.

"You're going to be okay, Sakura." Sasuke said. He was about to lose his mind when the most unexpected thing happened. Sakura smiled a brilliant smile. "You guys are here" she sounded almost serene, as if it were her last words.

"Don't die, Sakura-chan! You can't die!" Naruto yelled.

The sound of someone slumping to the floor could be heard and the two genins turned their heads to their teacher as he approached them and knelt down next to Sakura. Checking on her wounds, the more he inspected, the more frustrated he got.

"We need to get her back to the village as soon as possible" he said then looked at Sasuke.

"Sasuke, you take her back to the village first. Naruto and I will settle things here" Kakashi ordered in a voice that was not to be argued with. Naruto kept his mouth shut even though he wanted very badly to be the one to take Sakura back to the village, but he knew that compared to Sasuke's speed, his was of no match to his raven haired teammate.

"Don't pull the other kunais out until she receives medical attention. She's losing enough blood already" Kakashi added as Sasuke picked Sakura up in his arms cautiously. He looked down at her, his eyes full of concern before he looked at Kakashi and gave him a slight nod.

"Take care of her, teme" Sasuke turned to meet the serious eyes of his blonde teammate and then smirked arrogantly at him. Naruto rolled his eyes and then Sasuke was gone.

...

Her breathing had become shallower. He could feel the rise and fall of her chest becoming weaker as he tore through the forest. Suddenly furious with himself, Sasuke brought her body closer to his. _Just hold out for a little longer, Sakura. _

"Sasuke"

Her hoarse voice froze his blood as he glanced down at her. "What is it, Sakura?" he asked, his voice was trembling but he did nothing to mask it. "The royals..." she breathed. Sasuke could feel a spike of annoyance directly at Sakura.

She was half dead and yet she has the time to worry about others? There has to be a limit to how selfless one can be. "They're fine, Sakura. Kakashi and Naruto and handling them. The mission is a success"

Sakura breathed out and Sasuke had no doubt that she was smiling at the moment, "That's good..." her voice trailed off and Sasuke didn't like how her voice sounded, so weak and faint. So when he glanced down to see her eyes closed- he promptly lost his mind.

* * *

**BAHAHA I BET YOU FEEL SCAMMED RIGHT NOW CAUSE THE UPDATE IS SO SHORT! I had no idea how it became this short e_e I'M SORRY!**

**BUUUUUUT BEFORE I GO OFF MY ALL CAPS HIGH! TELL ME SOMETHING!**

**If Sasuke were a puppy, what breed would he be?**


	12. His Decision

**Yes I know I update slower than a dysfunctional computer but!**

**Better late than never right? :D Ahahaha-**

**D: don't kill me.**

* * *

**His Decision**

_Sakura's eyes were closed and he came to a standstill on the tree branch, shaking her slightly in his arms as he called out for her. "Sakura!" she didn't respond "Sakura! Don't do this to me! Open your eyes!" he was desperate to prompt some kind of movement from her, anything to show that she was breathing._

_Sakura groaned and squirmed slightly in his hold, her eyes screwed shut as her face contorted with pain and discomfort. _

_Sasuke felt like he had aged 10 years. She was still alive. She was going to be okay. _

…

Sasuke sighed and into his intertwined fingers and then leaned back onto his chair, closing his eyes in fatigue. After a beat, he couldn't help but to open an eye and sneak a peek on Sakura's sleeping form. He didn't understand why, but the steady rise and fall of her chest was very reassuring for him. He couldn't remember the last time he had ever been riled up that much.

He sighed again and rested his forehead on Sakura's hospital bed. "What are you doing to me?" he groaned.

Sakura shifted slightly and Sasuke immediately lifted his head. Her brows furrowed and her bandaged hand twitched. Instinctively, Sasuke reached out to hold it. Sakura's expression softened and her breaths fell back into place

A tingling warm sensation started to spread through his chest and his heart beats fluctuated a little. He scowled at the involuntary change of his body, he no longer understood his own feelings anymore and this was new to him—he just had to find out whether it was the good kind of new or the bad kind.

His train of thought had been rudely interrupted when he suddenly felt an ominous hostile intent coming from the window in which suspected to have been left open by the nurse earlier that afternoon. Now it was already evening and the sun was setting. His eyes narrowed suspiciously at the window then slowly slipped his hand out of Sakura's and made his way towards the window.

Three steps away from the window and he was attacked by a kunai, his reflexes acted immediately and he had just barely dodged the kunai which ended up stabbed into the sliding door on the other side of the room. Sasuke wasted no time in arming himself and leaping out the window.

From there he was ambushed by not one, but five sound shinobis dressed in the same disgusting fashion—he was cornered. If he leaps back inside the hospital room, he would lead the danger back to Sakura and all his other escape routes that he mapped out in his head were definitely going to be blocked.

Sasuke could only hold his guard and try to fend them off for now. "What is your business here" he snarled defensively, his sharingan activated and pulsing as he made sure to keep at three of them within his sight.

"We didn't come here to fight" a silky but sinister voice said then chuckled. He, who goes by the name of Sakon, grinned deviously at Sasuke.

"We are messengers of Orochimaru, we'd rather not hurt you but we will if you resist his wishes" this voice was more monotonous and cold. The man goes by the name of Kimimaro.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, bemused. "What makes you think I'd go along with whatever that slimy creep plans to do with me" he snapped.

The girl of the team stomped her foot down, the impact of her foot on the branch caused the leaves on the tree to rain down on them. "Don't you _dare_ speak of Orochimaru-sama that way!" she snarled, her voice changing to a deeper and more demonic tone halfway through the sentence.

Sasuke could see the changes in her features as she yelled at him, her eyes threatened to pierce right through him and it was almost like horns were about to protrude from her skin.

"Tayuya!" a new voice snapped, a more masculine and gruff voice. "Be quiet, Tayuya. We don't want to draw attention!" Jirobo scolded.

"Shut up, Fatso! He just insulted Orochimaru-sama!" she shrieked.

"If you have any respect for Orochimaru-sama, you will complete the task he entrusted to us and if you draw attention to us, the chances of us succeeding with decrease" Kimimaro intercepted calmly but nonetheless they could sense the silent threat behind his words. _If you get in the way of our mission, I will personally remove you._

Tayuya kept her mouth shut.

Sasuke snorted. "Bunch of morons"

A twitch could be seen on three of the sound-nin's eyes as soon as he said it. "This guy's getting on my nerves" Sakon growled lowly.

"Get in line" Tayuya growled

Just as she said that, Sasuke's reaction was immediate. Taking their moment of blind hostility directed towards him, their goals were clouded and their actions will not be as effective. He wasted no time tapping into his cursed seal for the extra insurance before he went for the weakest looking target—the girl.

He landed a blow on her, however she blocked it with her crossed forearms. He managed to send her stumbling off the branch before he leaped into the air to avoid a tackle by Jirobo, he flipped onto a different branch, one that was hidden in the shadows as he try to snag a few moments for him to think of a plan.

There was no way in hell that he was going to leave Sakura unguarded with them there. He couldn't fight them off all at once. That would leave him with one thing to do, stall them and attract attention to himself then wait for help—he would still have to fight them.

Rolling his eyes, he readied his muscles to leap from his hiding spot behind the leaves, but someone else had got to him first.

"So you think the darkness is on your side?" Sakon's grimy low voice was like a bucket of ice water into his systems. His entire body tensed and his guard went up, however that wasn't enough to save him from the incoming blow from Jirobo.

Before he had the time to react to the sudden burst of murderous intent from his side, Jirobo had smashed him through a tree. He was quick to rebound as he felt the seal spreading across his skin, his reflexes were enhanced and his strength doubled. He smirked with confidence before leaping out of the way to avoid a drop kick from Sakon.

He didn't manage to get very far before one of them caught up to him, it was then that he realized that they had the exact type of markings coating their faces as he did. They were all Orochimaru's pawns. Not only that, but they seemed to have much better control over their seals compared to him. Even with his sharingan, he had trouble tracking their movements, not to mention he had more than one opponent to track.

Just as he countered Tayuya's punch, Sakon gripped him by the neck and slammed him against the trunk of the tree. Coincidentally the tree was just outside Sakura's window, he tried not to let his worry for her safety show on his face, he had no doubt that they wouldn't think twice before using her as a hostage if they knew how much she meant to him.

He winced as Sakon's fingers tightened, Sasuke gripped his solid wrist in attempts to try and pry his hand off of him but to no avail, instead he only made it worst.

Sakon bared his teeth "Now you listen well you conceited little shit, we are losing our patience with you. Did you think you were the only one that Orochimaru-sama branded with the cursed seal? Did you think you could control it better than us, who have spent their every waking hour training for Orochimaru-sama? There has to be a limit to how cocky one brat can get" Sakon practically snarled in his face.

Kimimaro, the one with the dead eyes, placed a hand on Sakon's shoulders and forced him to hold himself back.

"What he meant to say was you might want to rethink your situation. It's not like you have a choice, your return to Orochimaru-sama will be inevitable" Kimimaro glanced at Tayuya and the red haired girl smirked with delight before leaping through Sakura's window.

Sasuke was hit with a painful realization. His eyes widened and his cursed seal reactivated. Clawing at Sakon's hand, he snarled "Don't touch her!"

Sakon looked at Kimimaro for order and the milky haired boy simply nodded. Sakon's hand went slack and Sasuke immediately broke free, choosing to go straight for Tayuya instead of doing anything to them.

A hair's width worth of space dangled between Sakura's neck and the tip of Tayuya's kunai. He stood still immediately, knowing exactly what she wants. He glared heatedly at the only girl of the group but did nothing to threaten Sakura's life.

Tayuya smirked and looked away from him to gaze down at Sakura. She lifted a brow in bemusement and then scowled in resentment "There's something annoying about this girl" she growled lowly, her fingers twitched and Sasuke nearly lunged for her, instead he fisted his hands and kept them strictly at his sides, watching Tayuya's every move.

He felt a breeze as the rest of the team entered the hospital ward through the window but he kept his eyes solely on Tayuya. He heard one of them approach him and he spotted the milky white hair of Kimimaro from the corner of his eye. "Does she mean much to you?" it almost sounded mocking if it weren't for the monotone nature of his voice.

Urged to punch something, Sasuke could feel his mark pulsating and burning, his entire body felt as if he had been lit with fire. His breathing grew more and more ragged as he slowly succumbed to the agonizing sensation on the back of his neck.

"Let her go" he spoke in a low tone.

Kidomaru scoffed "I don't think you're in any position to give orders now"

Sasuke ignored him "She has nothing to do with this" Sasuke tried again.

A lowly snicker followed, it was Sakon who was leaning with his shoulder against the wall, watching Sasuke with a look of disgust "Yeah, but she has everything to do with you" he mocked.

"We won't do anything to her, so long as you return to Orochimaru" Kimimaro decided to take over the persuasion. Sasuke, still stubborn with his choices, snapped "I never belonged to him in the first place" he snarled in disgust.

Kimimaro glanced at Tayuya and nodded. Sasuke, alarmed by this little gesture, tried to lunge for Tayuya but he was shoved firmly against the wall and held there by Jirobo as he struggled to get to Sakura.

Tayuya reached into her pouch and pulled out a dull grey flute, with a smirk she pressed her lips to the opening and took a deep breath. The mellow sound of the flute drifted lightly across the room but as Tayuya played, the tone and tempo of the sound changed. The notes sounded demonic and the tempo increased and only continued to rise. Soon the notes materialized from the flute and flowed towards Sakura.

The inky black notes melted into her contrasting pale skin and marked her with a symbol that resembled an Oni.

"Orochimaru is a patient man. You have three days to give your answer. We'll be waiting outside the village at midnight. Just so you know, Tayuya's curse cannot be broken by anyone but herself, if you don't show up then she will pay the consequences" Kimimaro gestured towards Sakura's oblivious sleeping form.

Sasuke glared at Kimimaro, his body still flexed with the need to strike something down. Kimimaro paid no mind to his hostility. "If you do show up, then Tayuya will release the jutsu, it is simple" Kimimaro finished and then gestured for Jirobo to release him.

As soon as he felt the hold on him slack, Sasuke tore free and threatened to smash all their faces in however they had all escaped nimbly out the window. He glanced outside, his sharingan spinning with fury. "You have three days, Uchiha" Kimimaro reminded him and then he disappeared.

Enraged that they dared use Sakura to threaten him, Sasuke seeked a way to release his fury. His fingers were clenched as if he was crushing something then he closed his hands into a fist and slammed the side of his hand into the wall next to him, creating a dent in the concrete before he slid to the floor; his cursed mark finally residing.

"Damn it…" he cursed softly.

…

It's been two days since Orochimaru's goons paid their little visit to Sasuke and Sakura has finally been allowed her freedom from the hospital. Sasuke has grown more and more paranoid over Sakura's safety and the rosette has already caught him staring at her on more than one occasion. So she decided to confront him about it as they were walking home together.

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye only to realize how stiff he looked, his muscles were clenched and his eyes scanned the street in a way that made him seem as if he was suspicious of everyone. Sakura reached out her hand to him, but she had barely brushed her fingertips on his sleeve before he gasped and looked at her with frantic eyes.

Sakura jerked her hand back a little, startled by his reaction.

His let out a breath of air and squeezed his eyes closed as he turned away from her. "What is it, Sakura?" he asked her hoarsely.

"Is there something wrong, Sasuke?" she asked, her voice laced with concern as they continued to walk. She caught up with his strides and leaned slightly forward to try and meet his eyes "You seem a little… jumpy" she finished, unsurely.

"I'm fine" he said, turning his face away from her in a deliberate move to avoid intent gaze.

"You don't sound very convincing. Have you been sleeping okay?" she asked, knowing that Sasuke was the only one that insisted to the nurse that he stayed overnight in her ward, he might not have slept as comfortably as she did.

"I slept just fine, Sakura" he sounded insistent, silently begging Sakura to drop the topic with the use of her name.

Sakura laced her hands behind her back and nodded more to herself than him. She took large awkward steps like a child to try and ignore the rigid atmosphere. Sasuke slowed his pace to match her to ensure that she was always in his line of sight.

After a seemingly long walk for Sasuke, they finally made it back to the manor where Sasuke was determined to keep Sakura there to guarantee her safety until he thinks of a way to loophole his way out of Orochimaru's threat.

Sasuke held the door open for Sakura as he allowed her to go in first. He glanced back suspiciously at the front porch before entering the house and surprisingly, he locked the door behind him. This sparked suspicions in Sakura. From what Sakura could tell, the Uchiha district was pretty much deserted aside from a few elderly that survived the war. So there was generally no threat of being robbed or attacked and because of that, Sasuke never bothered to lock the house ever if they are in it.

Sasuke was definitely keeping something from her, she briefly wondered if Naruto and Kakashi knew about it as well. She couldn't shake the feeling of betrayal if her team was really keeping secrets from her.

"What do you want for dinner, Sasuke?" she asked him as Sasuke was already climbing the stairs, headed for his room in seek of seclusion. "Anything's fine" he replied monotonously before disappearing to the next floor completely.

'_Perhaps he's tired' _

Next Day…

The sun shone on Sakura's sleeping face, her eyes shot open; her emerald eyes shimmered with the reflection of the sun's rays before she squinted and placed the back of her hand on her forehead to obstruct the painful brightness of the sunlight.

"I'd better get up and make breakfast" she mumbled sleepily

After washing up, Sakura twisted the doorknob and pulled open the door only to see Sasuke doing the same thing from his room across the hall.

Sakura smiled warmly "Morning"

Sasuke looked away as he shoved his hands in his pockets "Hn." He grunted out before walking down the corridor. Sakura could feel the weight of the atmosphere, for once she didn't know what to say to Sasuke. She shuffled dejectedly behind Sasuke and followed him to the kitchen. She stood awkwardly in the kitchen for a moment before deciding to ask what Sasuke wanted for breakfast. "Sasuke-"

"Don't make my breakfast today" he cut her off and then walked straight to the fridge to grab a fresh tomato before disappearing out to the backyard.

Sakura's shoulders slump and she cast her gaze to the floor "O-Okay…" she mumbled to herself. The clenched feeling of rejection was crawling over her skin and her heart felt heavier as she tried not to take too much offense from his words.

For the rest of the morning, Sakura tried to distract herself from Sasuke's indirect rejection to spend the morning with her. So far she has mopped all two floors and dusted behind every shelf in the manor and now that she was free again, her mind wandered back to Sasuke's words.

He has never rejected her meals before, even though their routine breakfast consisted of her wondering out loud about what they were going to do for the day and Sasuke throwing in a few sarcastic comments whenever possible, he has never given her the idea that he hated her company.

But now, the air that he gives out makes her feel as if she was a nuisance to him. Maybe she was just thinking too much into it, Sasuke probably just woke up on the wrong side of the bed and he was just his grumpiest this morning. Feeling slightly better, she decided it was time to do some reading in the library.

The afternoon passed without Sakura noticing and evening came. Sasuke returned from his training site in secluded forest within the Uchiha district, he entered through the paper sliding doors of the backyard and decided to mask his chakra until he was back into his room. He needed to stay packing and leave before midnight without Sakura's knowledge; it would make it less painful for the both of them.

But as he was about to ascend up the stairs, he realized that the house felt too empty and his mind briefly wonder about the whereabouts of his housemate. The more he thought about it the more he worried; what if Orochimaru's scum had gotten to her?

He panicked and bounded around the house in a silent search for Sakura.

She wasn't in her room, she wasn't in the backyard and she wasn't in the kitchen. Which leaves-

The library.

He was right; Sakura was huddled in the corner of the library, surrounded by piles and piles of differently shaped books. He let out a soft sigh of relief and instantly regretted it, he looked to see if Sakura had noticed him yet but she hadn't moved an inch. Her eyes were glued to the contents of the book and her brows were knitted together in concentration. Sasuke's eyes softened at the sight of her.

He jumped slightly when she snapped her book close and stretched her arms above her head. He stepped into the shadows behind the door frame but continued to watch as she moved about the room, placing all the books back to their shelves. Sasuke was about to leave before he noticed that she had stopped dead in her tracks.

The book she was holding slipped out of her hands as did all the books she was cradling in her other arm. A pained look crossed her features as she struggled to breathe; she clutched a handful of her shirt at her chest and doubled over. Eventually her legs gave way and she collapsed to the floor.

Sasuke was at her side immediately, calling out her name and holding her trembling body. "What's wrong? Sakura!" he yelled but she didn't respond. Her body broke out into spasms as the pain rang loudly throughout her body. Sasuke noticed something glowing on her neck; Tayuya's curse mark. Sasuke's jaw tightened as she held Sakura closer, he lifted her up carefully and decided to bring her to her room for now.

After he made sure she was settled in, he proceeded to pack for his trip—one in which he would never return from. He wouldn't need very much, just a few sets of clothing and his weapon pouch. As he chucked the last set of his clothes into his pack his eyes brush across the wooden framed picture of Team Kakashi.

He reached out to grab it, examining it with soft interest. He traced the protective glass with his fingertips, his touch lingering slightly longer on Sakura's face. He shut his eyes and furrowed his brows painting a pained expression on his features. His eyes stung with tears but he refused to let them escape. Once he managed to steel his emotions, he set the picture face down on the table and grabbed his pack. However before he could leap out the window, he was stopped by the strong urge to see Sakura for one last time.

So he did.

He stepped silently into her room; her heavy pants were all that he could hear. His guilt for her suffering suddenly hit him harder than anything. He found himself standing silently at her bedside, watching her as she struggled to take in her next breath. "I'm sorry, Sakura" he apologized quietly and then leaned over to place a gentle kiss on her forehead. He straightened with a faint blush on his cheeks and then tried to distract himself from his bold move, his eyes eventually landed on his forehead protector in his hands. He gave the symbol one last trace before placing it down at Sakura's bedside table.

"Goodbye"

…

"Do you think he's going to come?" Kidomaru asked from the branch he was squatting on. His eyes were fixated on Konoha's secret village exit.

Sakon snorted "He'd better come, unless he wants a corpse as a teammate by tomorrow" he smirked at Tayuya who held an equally smug face.

"Well we'd better not mess this up for Orochimaru, Kimimaro's not going to be here" Jirobo said, his large arms crossed on his chest as he leaned against the tree that Kidomaru was perched on. Sakon turned back and glared at the bulky built member "Are you implying that there's something wrong with my leadership skills?" he snarled threateningly at Jirobo.

Jirobo shrunk back with fear "No! I didn't mean it like that" he defended himself but before Sakon could retort, Kidomaru spotted their target.

"He's here!"

Everyone turned their attention to the approaching Uchiha. Sakon smirked and turned to greet their new member of sound. "I see you're not as stupid as I thought you were" he mocked. Sasuke paid no mind to Sakon's tone, instead he pressed his glare on Tayuya. "Release the curse" his fist clench and his sharingan activated subconsciously "Now"

"Ever heard of using the word _'please'_?" Tayuya scoffed.

Sasuke looked about ready to tear her apart but Sakon raised a hand and glanced at Tayuya "Do as he says"

Tayuya snorted and took out her flute and played the notes of the cursing song in backwards, the holes of the flute glowed for a moment and then died down. "There, no harm down. Your teammate's going to be fine and you get to serve Orochimaru-sama" Sakon stated nonchalantly.

Sasuke pushed past him roughly and walked on ahead "Let's go" he said monotonously, adjusting his pack on his shoulder, not even sparring a glance back at his future teammates as he continued to walk.

Sakon twitched "I'd advise you to stop acting so high and mighty if you want to get to Sound in one piece, Uchiha" he snarled venomously at Sasuke. Sasuke turned around and looked at Sakon before he smirked arrogantly "Oh? I wonder what your master would say about you damaging his future vessel" Sasuke challenged.

Sakon's eyes widened, he was right. Now he was livid, how dare he speak so arrogantly just because Orochimaru had eyes for his sharingan. He was going to pay, one way or another.

…

Sakura jerked awake, her body broke out in cold sweat as her eyes darted about the room. Looking for something, only problem is that she didn't know what she was looking for. While she was unconscious, vague images of people she didn't know and Orochimaru kept appearing in her dream. They were laughing sinisterly; it almost seemed as if they were triumphant in something. The more she thought about it the more her mind throbbed.

She clutched her aching head and groaned, her heart began to beat faster and her lungs demanded more air as she tried to calm herself down from this unknown attack. She tried to distract herself; unconsciously, she reached out her chakra to seek for Sasuke's only to find that he wasn't present in his room. She blinked a few times and exhaled heavily before inhaling quickly. "Sasuke…" she gasped.

The last piece of the puzzle clicked into place as she finally realized what was going on. She knew Orochimaru had his eyes on Sasuke's sharingan and she knew that he was going to stop at nothing to attain Sasuke. He must've said something to Sasuke, that's why he was acting so distant this morning.

She stumbled out of her room and towards Sasuke's, hastily she threw the door open—no one.

"Sasuke!" she yelled for him, but all she got back was the resonating echo of her own voice. The house was empty.

She ran back into her own room to prepare to go after him but something glimmering under the moonlight caught her eye. She approached it with cautious steps before inhaling sharp upon recognizing the object—Sasuke's forehead protector.

…

Sakura ran through the empty streets of the Uchiha district and into the main village as fast as she could, along the way she spotted Naruto's apartment and made the quick decision to bring him along, the more people the better. Sasuke is probably not alone so they would stand more of a chance if there were to be a struggle—which was most likely to happen.

She leaped up to Naruto's window to find that it had been left unlocked; she wasted no time in waking him. Her frantic pleas for his awakening took immediately effect, especially when she mentioned that Sasuke had left the village. Naruto bolted awake and changed quickly after having his questions denied by Sakura.

…

"What the hell is wrong with teme! He was fine the last time I saw him, why would he leave?" Naruto yelled.

Sakura looked guilty, she had known that there was something wrong with the way he was acting yesterday, she should've confronted Kakashi about it, maybe now they would've stopped him.

Sakura banished the irrelevant thoughts from her mind and concentrated. She couldn't sense his chakra, which meant he probably left while she was still unconscious. "He probably used the village's secret exit, it's less conspicuous" Sakura said, quickly.

Naruto nodded and followed her as they leaped from roof to roof.

They arrived shortly at the exit and there was still no sign of Sasuke's chakra, he had left earlier than Sakura had thought. She stood still and contemplated whether to go after him or alert the Hokage and Kakashi. Naruto rushed past her "What are you waiting for, Sakura-chan!" he said, his back facing her, he turned around and grinned "Let's drag that moron back to konoha"

Feeling her spirits lift, Sakura nodded firmly. She had barely managed to take two steps before they were ambushed by 3 shadows. She attempted to arm herself but only succeeded in brushing her fingertips against her red stringed kunai before she felt as if she had been electrocuted by a thousand volts. Naruto's frantic face as he yelled her name was the last thing on her mind before she blacked out.

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**Did chu laike it? :3 Leave a review my lovely readers *(*´∀｀*) **

**D: don't kill me.**


	13. The Turning Point

**Warning before you proceed, I haven't spell checked this chapter because I wanted to get this up for you guys before Monday, but apparently that didn't work considering it's past midnight here. Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

**The Turning Point**

Day was breaking and Naruto's nose twitched before he was hit with a chilly sensation that prompted him to curl up defensively like a centipede. His movements paused for a moment before he bolted upright. His eyelids were still weighed down by sleep as he blinked slowly and looked around curiously to try and remember what had happened.

As he was glancing around, his eyes brushed across the bright red color of a string. The string was conveniently attached to a battered up kunai. His eyes widened as the memories of last night hit him like a wave of nausea before he lunged for the kunai "Sakura-chan!" and as soon as his skin made contact with the aging metal, he felt a surge of warmth intruding his body.

"Naruto…" Sakura's voice resounded in his head, albeit it was very much faded.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted out as he gripped the kunai tighter "Where are you right now? I'll come rescue you!" he spoke out loud. _"Naruto I can't stay for long, your kyuubi chakra is overpowering mine. Go tell Tsunade-sama that Sasuke has left the village. You can still catch up to him. Please go after him."_ Her voice was fading fast, Naruto could barely hear her.

"What about you, Sakura-chan!" There was no reply "Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted but it was too late, the warmth of Sakura's chakra was gone.

His initial reaction was to charge off blindly into the forest in a desperate move to find Sakura but the echo of her soothing voice was still resonating in his nerves. He tore his body from facing the exit and back onto the direction of the village.

…

Of all the mornings that Tsunade has had, this one has got to be the worst.

She had barely made it to her office, having been persistently pestered awake by her overly duty-minded assistant, Shizune. Tsunade did not expect Naruto to barge in just as she was having her morning tea, his eyes wide and his chest heaving. She looked surprised, setting her tea down as she prepared for bad news.

Just as she had suspected, Naruto slammed his palm down on her desk just as her cup touched the wooden surface and began to talk so fast, she could barely understand him. But she caught the main points, anything else were just details. "We will send out two teams to retrieve Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura" Tsunade stated calmly as to not agitate Naruto's mood any further. She was afraid that if she didn't calm him down now, he was going to pull a moronic stunt like going after them himself.

"Shizune, get me the files of all available jounin and chuunin"

"Yes ma'am"

…

Sakura drifted slowly back into consciousness, but before her chakra could fully awaken, she held it back as to not alert her kidnappers of her viability. This would give her an advantage with the element of surprise. Her mind began to race, thinking of all the possible ways for her to escape and evaluating the enemy as much as she can from her perspective.

She was being carried; her body hung lifelessly on a man's shoulder—once again. She was cuffed by the hands by a very dense metal, hence the ache from the force pulling down on her hands. Her legs were free which was a good thing—it makes running a possibility. Without being too obvious, she reached out her chakra to evaluate the skill level of her abductors.

There were at least six of them, there could be one scouting ahead so it's best that she prepared herself for the worst possible cases. Their chakras felt slightly more than a chuunin's level but not quite as impressive as Kakashi's. That means that they aren't jounin level, once again her escape would be slightly easier knowing this.

She wanted to sigh, it seemed like nowadays she's becoming a constant victim of abduction. The feeling of being hung like a towel on someone's shoulder is starting to actually feel comfortable to her now.

…

Meanwhile as Sakura tried to think of a way to escape, her fellow peers were trying to track her down. The team consisted of: Shikamaru, Hinata, Ino and Lee.

"Do you see anything up ahead, Hinata" Ino called from behind Hinata, who was in the lead so she could alert the group of any activity beforehand. Hinata shook her head, her eyes focused on what's up ahead, searching for any signs of Sakura. Lee was holding up the rear, he sobbed as he ran, throwing in his youthful devotions of love for Sakura once in a while. "Oh why did these cruel people have to take one as youthfully lovely as my cherry blossom! Sakura-saaaan!" he wailed.

Ino glanced back behind her "Are you sure we're going the right way, Shikamaru. We've been on this trail for almost an hour now and there's still no sign of Sakura" Ino complained. Shikamaru yawned sleepily and rubbed the back of his neck "Why did this mission have to be so early in the morning" he groaned.

"Quit with your complaining, Shikamaru! Sakura's been taken!" Ino snapped, obviously worried out of her mind for her friend. Shikamaru sighed "I heard you the first time" his disinterested eye reopened with a sudden look of seriousness in his eyes and Ino remained quiet, knowing that Shikamaru was thinking of another plan that would help them find leads to Sakura.

…

The team that was sent out to retrieve Sasuke wasn't in a much better situation. This time Neji led the charges, he, like Hinata had his byakugan activated and he took the lead for the very same reason. The team travelled in silence but they could feel the tension that was radiating off Naruto's person. His determination and will could be felt by the whole team. They have never seen Naruto look so serious before, they knew he was torn between choosing which team to go with as both Sakura and Sasuke meant a lot to him. He eventually made up his mind to go after Sasuke, knowing that was what Sakura had wanted him to do.

Naruto's jaw clenched as he picked up his speed. _When he got his hands on Sasuke, he was going to beat the living daylights out of the Uchiha. _

…

Sakura ran through the forest, breathing heavily as her legs struggled to carry her any faster. The shadows leapt around her, she knew she was going to be cornered if she continued to travel at her pace. She inhaled sharply as she tripped on a tree root, she tumbled forward and landed awkwardly on her face. By the time she had managed to push herself up, the shadows had closed in on her. Sakura looked down at her own injuries, her body was stained with patches of bruises and her side had been grazed by a kunai, staining her clothes with blood.

She wiped the corner of her mouth as she felt blood from the cut trickle down her chin. She had successfully managed to kill one of them, but that had only made them angry and fueled their desire to capture her, now she wasn't so sure whether she was going to live if she allowed herself to be captured by them once more.

Lifting her hands and molding her chakra to prepare for a desperate attempt to fight back, Sakura formed the necessary seals and whispered hoarsely "Katon, Goukakyuu no Jutsu (Fire release, Fireball Technique)" She blew with as much force as her abused lungs would allow her.

Although she didn't feel her technique connect, she could feel four very familiar chakras coming her way. If she could survive for just a while longer-

A man with his eyes bandaged leap down from the tree and advanced on her with great speed. She tried to get back on her feet but the suddenness of the action caused her legs to falter. She cursed quietly and winced, preparing herself for her fate.

"Dynamic entry!"

A blur of green was all that Sakura had caught with her eyes before the enemy who had targeted her had been knocked completely out of the way. A few moments later, she felt a chakra looming at her side. This one was close enough for her to take down with what strength she had left. She armed herself and just as the chakra spiked, she struck with cold brutality— stabbing the enemy right in the diaphragm only to realize that the enemy had been immobilized anyway. She looked past the gurgling man and saw that his shadow was linked with Shikamaru's.

He released his technique and straightened, offering her a nod as she did the same, albeit hers looked much weaker. Just as she got back on her feet, she heard the familiar voice of Ino call out to her "Sakura!"

She offered the girl a weak smile, feeling slightly unsteady on her feet. "Are you okay? Are you badly hurt?" Ino asked her, holding her by the shoulders and scanning her for major injuries. "You're bleeding!" Ino gasped.

Sakura looked down at it casually and shook her head "I'm fine" she brushed off the pain, her eyes looked up again to meet Ino's "What about Sasuke?" she asked, her eyes pleading for good news. Ino shook her head "They sent two separate teams, one to search for you and the other for Sasuke" Ino told her.

Sakura eyes look down dejectedly before nodded understandingly. "Who's in the team?" she asked. Ino thought for a moment "There was Neji, Naruto, Kiba and Chouji" she stated. Sakura nodded before they were interrupted by Shikamaru's voice.

"Ino!" he yelled "A little help would be nice!" he snapped before he dodged a kunai.

"I'm going after Sasuke" Sakura said, simply. Ino's eyes widened "You can! Your injuries" she argued but before she could reason any further, Sakura had taken off into the trees. The one man that was fighting Shikamaru noticed this and tried to go after her. Ino intercepted quickly "Shintenshin no Jutsu!" her body fell limp on the floor and the man who went after Sakura ceased his movements.

Shikamaru watched Sakura disappeared into the covers of the trees.

…

Meanwhile with the Sasuke retrieval team…

There were still no signs of Sasuke, but they knew they were going on the right way. How? The gigantic wall of web in their way hinted that someone didn't want them going any further. Naruto made a move to cut the web but Neji lifted his hand, stopping the blonde's movements. Neji's eyes narrowed at the figure hidden behind the tree on the other side of the web.

"Show yourself" Neji said, calmly.

A chuckle rumbled lowly in the forest air as the figure stepped out, prompting surprised looks from the team. Kidomaru was a dark skinned sound shinobi with an arrogant smirk, what was surprising was that he had six arms attached to his torso.

Kidomaru assessed the team with a smug look on his face. "The level of Konoha shinobis are much lower than I thought they'd be." he snorted. Akamaru and Kiba growled threateningly.

Neji lowered his hand "Take the long way around, Uchiha Sasuke's is not far away. I'll catch up with you guys once I'm done with him" Neji said, his tone was not to be argued with. Neji was confident, ready to prove to this six armed lowlife that Konoha shinobi was not to be underestimated.

"Are you sure, Neji?" Kiba asked, his wolfish eyes still glaring at Kidomaru.

"Go"

Kiba nodded firmly then leapt to the side, Naruto gave Neji a pat on the shoulder and Chouji casted one last unsure glance at the Hyuga before following Naruto and Kiba. Kidomaru attempted to stop them but he halted his movements when he felt his chakra being severed. Neji stood firmly on the branch just behind the severed webs, his arms raised in a Jyuken stance.

"Your opponent is me"

...

"Should we really be leaving Neji behind?" Chouji asked, hesitantly.

"Neji can handle himself" Kiba replied, with Neji gone, he had to be the one to track Sasuke's scent down. Naruto clenched his fist, he hated the idea of leaving his comrades behind but sometimes he could do nothing but place his trust in his comrades.

They leapt down the trees one by one when they reached a clearing. Kiba skid to a stop when their team came face to face with the next enemy. A bulkily build sound shinobi stood in the middle of the clearing with his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes impassive. Naruto was growing impatient now "Get out of the way!" he snapped, charging straight for the collected looking shinobi.

Jirobo uncrossed his arms and took on a stance, anticipating Naruto's attack.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Three other Narutos appeared, Jirobo ran up to Naruto with unseen speed. Kneeing the real Naruto right in the gut, upon contact to the real one, all the clones disappeared and Naruto shot backwards and sliding on the dirt back to his teammate.

"Naruto!" he heard his teammates call out to him.

Kiba helped the coughing blonde to his feet as Chouji rolled at full speed towards the enemy, determined to flatten the Sound shinobi before he could think to attack again. Jirobo formed the necessary seals and stomped his feet on the ground "Doton, Doroku Gaeshi!"

A chunk of the forest floor lifted up, forming a door-like structure in front of Jirobo. Chouji smashed through the wall with ease, Jirobo leapt out of the way just in time to dodge the devastating blow. Chouji deactivated his technique and skid to a stop on his feet, he turned around, eyes widened only to go head to head with Jirobo.

Their hands linked and they pushed against one another in a game of mercy. Chouji gritted his teeth, their joint hands trembling with force as both their faces reddening.

"Gatsuga!"

Jirobo pulled Chouji back so that he was in the range of Kiba's attack. Kiba and Akamaru changed the direction of their attack, eventually landing the hit on Jirobo instead of Chouji and stopped on the other side of the of the clearing. "Naruto go after Sasuke with Kiba!" Chouji said, his eyes narrowed with determination.

"I can stay and fight" Kiba growled as Akamaru barked in agreement.

"No! You need to lead Naruto to Sasuke" Chouji had barely managed to retort before Jirobo tackled him, throwing across the clearing and into the trees.

"Chouji!"

The once cowardly shinobi came back at Jirobo with twice as much power, rolling the bulky man ito the ground. He released the technique as Jirobo struggled to get up. "Go!" he yelled.

Kiba opened his mouth to speak but Naruto had rushed past him. "Move, Dog boy!" and reluctantly prompted the boy and his pup to follow.

...

By the time they stumbled upon the next enemy, there was no one left to lose. Kiba stepped up against Sakon, who had boldly declared himself as the leader of Orochimaru's personal bodyguards. "Sasuke's scent is just up ahead, now get lost you loser" were the last words Naruto had heard from Kiba before he had ultimately been forced to leave yet another one of his comrades behind.

Naruto ran at full speed down the direction that Kiba had told him, his eyes scanning the trees for any sign of Sasuke. He had to hurry, with each step he pushed himself hard and harder until he had blasted out of the confines of the trees. Ebony hair was the first thing that he saw, clenching his hands as he landed, Naruto shouted out to him.

"Sasuke, you bastard!" he snarled viciously.

Sasuke had stopped near a cliff but it wasn't just any cliff, it was the cliff of the Valley of the end; where the great Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama fought for three days and three nights and this is where the war against the Uchiha and Senju clan had ended, thus earning its name 'The Valley of The End'

Sasuke, however, was not alone. A girl around their age turned around as Sasuke continued to show his back to Naruto. "Tch, what's this trash doing here" she spat then looked past Naruto's shoulder. "They can't have sent you alone. Where's the rest of your team?" she asked smugly.

Naruto's fists tightened and Tayuya smirked upon understanding "Oh, I see. You left them behind to fend for themselves against my loser team" she crossed her arms and eyed Naruto up and down. "Well, I can tell you that you won't be seeing any one of your teammates any time soon" she reached for her flute "Or ever-"

"Sasuke, look at me!" Naruto snapped angrily.

There was silence.

Tayuya growled "Why you li-"

Sasuke's feet shuffled against the ground, stirring up bits of dust and pebbles as he did so. He turned to look at Naruto, his gaze was cold and distant. Naruto felt like he was staring at the Sasuke that he had first met during their first day of being assigned to Kakashi; the uncaring and arrogant Uchiha that he had hated so badly—until Sakura appeared in their lives. Naruto was confident of Sasuke's feelings for Sakura, he knew that Sasuke defecting against their village was with good reason—he was sure of it.

"What do you want, loser" Sasuke demanded flatly.

Their eyes made contact and Sasuke suddenly felt as if he was being reprimanded by his parents for doing something wrong. He felt guilty and ashamed of betraying him and Sakura. _Sakura…_ he briefly wondered about her, about how was she doing. He was slightly disappointed about the fact that Sakura was not with Naruto and wondered why.

He banished all thoughts of Konoha from his head before they could manifest any further. Right now, he had to put up a believable front for Naruto and get him to give up on him. Convince him that this was what he wanted—lie.

Before he could say anything, Naruto cut him off and the words hit him like a ton of bricks.

"She's been taken, Sasuke"

For a brief moment, Sasuke had hoped that the person Naruto was talking about wasn't the person he was thinking about.

"Sakura's been taken"

In that moment, Naruto saw the surprise crossing Sasuke's eyes. His emotions began to show, one by one in his eyes again. The endless pools of his eyes now showed fear and concern before flashing to anger. "Then why did you come after me!" he shouted, losing his composure and character for a moment.

Naruto's gaze was steady as Sasuke began to lose himself in panic, his eyes demanding answers from Naruto. "Sakura-chan used the last of her chakra to tell me to go after you instead of telling me where she was" Naruto said after a pregnant pause.

Sasuke ran a hand through his hand and cursed under his breath. "That idiot!"

"Where is she now?" Sasuke demanded, taking a step towards Naruto, completely forgetting about the deal to go to Orochimaru. Tayuya raised a hand to stop him. "Where do you think you're going?" she snapped, annoyed that she had been disregarded throughout their little conversation. "You are coming with me, back to Orochimaru-sama." She told him simply.

Sasuke activated his sharingan and glared angrily at Tayuya. "The only reason I agreed to follow you was so you would leave Sakura alone" he snarled and took a step closer to her; she glared down at her with menace radiating off his body. He continued through gritted teeth "If I find out that you people are responsible for this-" he cut himself off as he swiftly armed himself.

Tayuya raised an eyebrow casually. "Then what? You really think you stand a chance against me?" she said, challengingly.

"He's not alone" Naruto interjected.

Tayuya took one look at Naruto and she broke out into fits of maniacal laughter. Then she stopped. Her eyes suddenly narrowed with a look of seriousness "This is why I hate Konoha trash"

Sasuke abruptly turned away from Tayuya "I'm going after her" he said simply. His tone was not to be argued with and Tayuya cursed herself for feeling the slightest fear of him.

"We had a deal!" she snarled at his retreating back

Sasuke smirked and looked past his shoulders "The deal just expired"

Tayuya gritted her teeth, her expression was absolutely livid. _How dare they disrespect her and Orochimaru's orders like that!_ Pulling her flute from her strap, Black marks began to spread across her body as she played a tantalizing melody. Sasuke turned around, eyes widened slightly and muscles tightened; he didn't exactly have the best memories of Tayuya's flute when they first met. His body slacked a little when he didn't recognize the sound. This wasn't the song she used to put the spell on Sakura; then what was it?

As Sasuke was busy thinking of possible strategies and counters for the unknown technique, Naruto's face was turning green with disgust as he lifted a trembling finger up to the grotesque creature of pure fat and muscles. "S-Sasuke…!"

Sasuke looked up from his thoughts and he could feel his stomach shrinking at the sight of what appeared to be a disfigured, skin-colored ogre. Its eyes were bandaged; around the side of its head were unevenly planted strands of oily black hair. It let out a low roar as it raised its bulgy arms in the air and then smacked the ground, making the earth rumble under Naruto and Sasuke's feet.

"Tch, we don't have time for this" Sasuke grumbled.

Naruto look at Sasuke, surprised. "You really want to go save Sakura-chan, don't you?"

Sasuke shot Naruto a quick glare "Well I wouldn't have to if you were competent enough to take care of her!" he snapped.

Naruto raised his hands in surrender, taken aback by Sasuke explosion "Alright alright, jeez you're so snappy"

"I have a plan"

"That's more like it" Naruto grinned.

Sasuke briefly explained his plan to Naruto whilst they dodged the blindly thrown blows from Doki, which is later found out was the name of Tayuya's summon. If they were caught by any one of Doki's blows, they didn't have the confidence to say that they'd live.

Naruto had just barely dodged one of Doki's limbs with a hairline's distance between them. "Ready when you are, teme!" he said.

Sasuke nodded and activated his cursed seal, allowed the black marks to crawl onto his skin, he relished in the feeling of being surrounded by power. He grinned maniacally before forming the necessary seals for his chidori. Tayuya noticed his moment of immobility and switched from having Doki attack Naruto to Sasuke.

Naruto flung a few kunais with explosive tags attached to them at the ogre's feet, prompting the creature to take a few steps back and towards Tayuya who was standing on the edge of the cliff. A look of annoyance flashed across her eyes as she played louder, placing the ogre in a shorter leash.

The ogre was about to lunge at Sasuke however, having been bought the time that he needed, Sasuke was able to successfully draw the chidori from his body. Sasuke charged at the ogre, gripping his arm as he did, he thrusted the chidori into the ogre's chest. The smell of charred flesh filled his nose before the ogre tumbled in uneven steps backwards. Tayuya had noticed this too late as her own summon stumbled back to her, his back colliding with her as they both went down the cliff together.

"We did it!" Naruto cheered.

Sasuke exhaled heavily then shook his head as he panted. "She's not going to die from that, let's go" he said and then turned to walk towards the forest. The rustling of bushes had caught the boys by surprised, but before either of them were able to arm themselves, the unmistakable color of their teammate's hair caught their eye. Sakura had stumbled out of the forest and was now sitting on all fours with her trembling arms holding her up.

They both stared at her as if she were an alien as she panted her lungs out. Her face as pale and her wounds were bleeding out. It wasn't until she had lifted her head and the familiar look of her emerald eyes melted their frozen muscles and prompted them to move. "Sakura-chan, what are you doing here?" Naruto asked, stumbling to her side after Sasuke.

Sakura had run throughout the forest, hiding and dodging from some of her captors that were not contained by Shikamaru's team. She searched and searched for Sasuke's chakra, she even stumbled upon a few fights along the way before she was finally able to pinpoint Sasuke's location near the Valley of The End.

"Don't go, Sasuke" she panted out, her voice wavering as she spoke his name. Sasuke looked surprised, how selfless can one get? After being abducted, the only thing she could think of was him leaving the village? He was suddenly furious with her, with himself, with everyone. He cursed himself for falling pawn to Orochimaru's wishes, for not trying harder to stay in Konoha. If he had been strong enough to protect her then none of this would've happen. In fact, they would probably be eating breakfast by now.

Sakura looked up and gripped Sasuke by his upper arms, her green eyes shimmered pleadingly and piercing his very soul. Sasuke frowned when he saw the browning patches of blood staining her crimson shirt. "You need a hospital, Sakura" he told her, but when he looked up to meet her eyes, she had done the one thing he never expected her to do.

She had just clumsily smashed her lips on his. Her eyes were closed and her fingers tightened around his biceps. After a moment, Sakura pulled away and Sasuke allowed their lip to part albeit he couldn't hide the look of reluctance in his eyes. Sakura's face was flushed and her pupils were dilated. She looked unsure of herself, bordering on panic. Sasuke was still dazed from the shock that her kiss had brought.

Naruto was first to break the silence as his scream echoed throughout the entire forest. "S-S-Sakura-chan!?" he spluttered, not believing what he had just seen. "D-D-Did you just..." Naruto's voice trailed off as he looked like he was about to pass out.

Sakura down casted her gaze and released Sasuke's arms, "I-I don't know what came over me" she furrowed her brows as if she was trying to figure out the problem with her. "I'm sorry… Sasuke" she mumbled unsurely.

Sasuke's ego felt briefly wounded as the look of regret seemed to have taken over Sakura's features. Sure, he didn't react to the kiss, but only because he didn't know how. He had never been kissed before, how was he supposed to know!

"L-Lets just get you to the hospital" he mentally kicked himself for losing his cool.

As they were helping Sakura to her feet, the melodious tone of the flute filled their ears. Sakura looked up; a suddenly feeling of Déjà vu had hit her. The distinct tone of this particular flute was nothing new to her.

Suddenly a demonic laughter erupted from the cliff, they turned just in time to see Tayuya land on the edge, her appearance has changed; her head was no longer sporting her previous hat or bandages, instead the top of her head protruded with horns. Her skin had darkened, her eyes were rimmed with black and the white of her eyes were black as well and her iris had turned a contrasting color of piercing gold.

The three felt a pulsing sensation throughout their body, Sasuke was about to tell Naruto to run with Sakura, but when he looked back, they were no longer there. His arms, he found had been restrained by a wire of some sort.

He tugged on his hands to see if there was a way of breaking out of his restraints. He suddenly felt his right hand go numb. Curious, he turned his head to look at it only to have the gruesome image of his arm melting thrown before his eyes. He could feel it, the feeling of his bones and skin losing its usage and drip to the floor. He promptly panicked when he felt the sensation move up his arm, towards his shoulder.

However, before he could start to struggle, his ears picked up the agonized scream of his blonde teammate. "Naruto!" he called out but there was no reply. "Tch!" He then realized where he remembered the sensation from. Itachi had once put a genjutsu on him when he was due for his immunity shot as a kid. Having that memory return to him now would've amused him but now, all that was in his mind was trying to recall how Itachi had taught him to escape from a genjutsu.

He squeezed his eyes closed and attempted to dispel the genjutsu from his chakra system. "Kai!" his chakra circulation did not cut off for long enough to cleanse the illusion, when he reopened his eyes he was met with the same sight. He couldn't seem to be able to summon the control with his chakra to dispel the technique and this peeved him to no end.

He felt a gentle hand on his back and then the soft spoken voice of his teammate was heard "Kai!" instantly his world distorted back to reality as he collapsed onto the floor, his muscles were cramped and his chakra felt drained. He looked over to his teammates to find them in similar conditions. Tayuya's summonses were now looming over their weakened bodies and they had no way of fighting them. Sakura's previous wounds were beginning to open up and Naruto was still slightly traumatized by the genjutsu.

Just as Tayuya was about to finish them off, the shadow move at incredible speed shot from the trees and then there was a pause before all of Tayuya's summons had been sliced up beyond recognition. Their blood dripped onto the members of Team Kakashi. The largest summon, Doki, who had been the one to obstruct their view from Tayuya, now disappeared and revealed a ponytailed man, standing on the edge of the cliff with his kodachi impaled through Tayuya's heart.

The only female of the sound four had her eyes widened and forward, her flute was still pressed against her lips as she morphed back to her human form. Uchiha Itachi's eyes were livid as he threw Tayuya into a tsukiyomi in the last moments of her death, making her suffer for at least three days in her head before dying. Itachi withdrew his sword from her body and allowed it to fall over the cliff and rid it of Tayuya's blood.

Itachi turned to look back at the three stunned genin, the blood splatters that adorned his cheeks made him look like the cold hearted killer that he was so renowned for in the village. He deactivated his eyes and sheathed his sword before walking towards the scared looking genin with hurried steps.

Itachi crouched down in front of Sakura and Sasuke and pulled them both into an embrace. "Thank god I made it on time" he whispered hoarsely.

Stunned, they didn't say anything until he pulled away and looked sternly at Sasuke "You foolish little brother! How dare you even consider leaving the village behind for that scum! Why did you not confront anyone of their dilemma?"Itachi scolded "You're lucky I returned early from my mission" he sighed in a softer tone.

Sakura and Naruto couldn't help but feel slightly touched at the scene of Itachi openly showing his brotherly love for Sasuke. Naruto couldn't help but feel envious of Sasuke in that situation. Itachi ruffled Naruto's unruly hair before smirking and picking up Sakura. "Let's return" he said.

Sasuke and Naruto got up; their knees were still unstable from the side effect of the genjutsu. "Sakura needs the hospital" Sasuke interjected. Itachi nodded, his face turned serious. "Some of your teammates have already been admitted into the hospital with grievous wounds" he said.

A wave of guilt rushed over the members of Team Kakashi but right now, all they could do was hope for the best.

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**I hope this chapter wasn't too bad, I'm a little sleepy and the last part may have been just something I thought of from the top of my head. Review and let me know what you think of my sleep-writing :D**

**Random Question of the chapter!**

**If Sasuke and Sakura were to have a child, what would be an appropriate name? **


	14. Intrusion!

**I decided I should post a new chapter before the christmas mood runs out, I stayed up all night for you guys so please enjoy :D **

**This chapter has a special dedication to: AwesomeNeko**

**Who gave me the idea for this chapter. So thank youuuu~**

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**Intrusion!**

_Sakura was having her flesh wound and reopened stitches patched up with Naruto and Sasuke on two separate stretchers, going through their check-ups in case of any poisoning or internal injuries. Sakura had taken the most damage out of the team and her chakra had been the most spent, Shikamaru had just handed in a report to the Hokage about the unknown nin that abducted Sakura. He told her than the autopsy results would be ready in a few days and they would be able to find out just who were her captors that seemed so fixated on her in particular, seeing as they did not take Naruto even though they were both incapacitated. _

_Team Kakashi could hear a ruckus being riled up outside their room, piquing their interest. Fortunately for their curiosity, the door to their ward had been left open, allowing them a very good view on the patient that was being transferred on a stretcher. _

"_Chouji!" They heard a familiar voice call out. _

_The stretcher was moving fast, but all of them caught a good look at the completely incapacitated Akimichi Chouji lying on top. Multiple fluids were hung next to him as the nurses wheeled him down the hall. Ino, the patient's only female of Team Asuma had a look of fear and concern painting her features as she followed closer by the stretcher. _

_A sudden wave of guilt settled in the bottom of Sakura's stomach, making her feel sick. She was helpless in this sort of situation. Out in the field, aside from taking lives, her skills showed no meaning. She has bad stamina and a very average chakra reserve size. Once those two run out, she was useless, just like she had been when everyone was out trying to bring Sasuke back. Where was she? Busy being captured. _

_She wanted to laugh at herself, what good was the chakra control she was praised for when all she could use it for was destruction. _

_The next day consisted of Tsunade yelling at them with Kakashi finally back from an important mission, he was rather surprised to find what his students had been up to during his absence. Naruto was praised for his quick thinking to inform the Hokage, Sasuke wanted to groan, he was definitely not going to let that compliment slide. It was decided that the genin of Team Kakashi were now placed under ANBU supervision as suggested by Danzo. The man handpicked the boy who was to be the additional member of the team acting as a liaison between the authorities and the team. _

_Not only that, but all of them were forbidden from missions outside of the village for the time being; meaning they were back to chasing cats and pulling weeds. The boys left the room looking rather upset._

_Sakura stayed behind to discuss an important matter with the Hokage. _

Nearly a month had gone by after the incident, Sakura had begun learning medical ninjutsu under the study of Tsunade whereas Ino, who had suddenly turned up in the office one day and asked to be taught medical ninjutsu as well and she had been assigned under the tutorage of Tsunade's first apprentice and assistant, Shizune.

Sai, the ANBU that's watching them did not play well with the boys of the team. He was around their age despite already being an ANBU rank. He held a fair resemblance to the Uchiha with his inky black hair however his complexion was unhealthily pale. The boy had a fashion sense that seemed to mimic Ino's except he has his pale stomach exposed with his outfit. He wore a black zip-up shirt that reached just under his diaphragm and black version of Sasuke's pants accompanied by standard shinobi sandals.

His fake smiles annoyed Naruto to no end and his random stares of blankness at Sasuke freaked the Uchiha out. Not only that, but he seemed to be leaning more and more towards the favour of Sakura. Together they bring a whole new level to being socially retarded, but what annoyed Sasuke was the fact that the two seemed to always share an endless conversation and Sakura genuinely seemed to enjoy his company when he detests the boy's guts.

He won't often try to listen in to their conversations before Sai would point it out bluntly. The boy was sharp but he needed to learn when to shut up. By the end of the week, Sasuke felt like the only thing he and Sakura had in common was the place they live.

…

"And then, Sai-kun recommended this new book to me. He said I could borrow it till I finish reading" Sakura chattered on at the dinner table as Sasuke picked sulkily at his food. He glanced up at the book that Sakura was talking about and read the title 'How to talk to boys'

Sasuke's eye twitched. Just what the hell is that guy teaching her?!

Sakura popped a cherry tomato into her mouth as she flipped through the pages with a concentrated look on her face "It says here to play with my hair and pout when I'm asking for something" Sakura contemplated it for a moment for Sasuke reached over the table and threw the god forsaken book over his head.

"Don't read it" he said, simply.

Sakura pouted and looked down dejectedly as she stroked a bunch of her hair with her hands "But Sai said it would help me understand you and Naruto better" she mumbled.

Sasuke swallowed nervously at her expression, he didn't want to upset her but he didn't want Sai being a bad influence to her either— but damn that book worked. "You understand us just fine" he scooped a lump of rice into his mouth and averted his eyes from hers.

"It's just…" Sakura trailed off and tempted Sasuke to look up when she didn't continue. A blush on her cheeks as she traced random patterns on the table, Sakura inhaled "Sometimes I feel like an outsider, still" Sasuke blinked, stunned by her confession of insecurity.

"No one sees you as an outsider, Sakura" he told her before he thought darkly. _It's that guy we see as an outsider. _"You've more than proven yourself as our teammate" he looked intently at her. Their eyes locked for a moment and Sakura felt her heart skip a beat. She blinked, trying to recover herself. _That was strange. _

Sakura stood abruptly in an almost mechanical way, her face was heating up. _Am I coming down with something?_ She asked herself briefly before noticing Sasuke's curious stare. "I… I'm done" she blurted out, she suddenly felt too nervous to continue with her meal anyway.

Sasuke's gaze travelled down to her bowl. _No you're not. _But as he looked up, Sakura was already scrapping the contents of her bowl into the bin. She dropped it into the sink and turned sharply in the direction of the exit of the kitchen "I'm going to bed, I'll wash the dishes tomorrow" she said quickly before bolting up the stairs. Sasuke waited until he could hear her door click shut before he sighed, wondering what had gotten into her.

He finished off the remnants of his dinner and gathered the empty dishes to the sink before proceeding to wash them. All while his thoughts lingered about the peculiar behaviour of his housemate.

…

Meanwhile…

Sakura was lying on her bed, her eyes gazing blankly at her ceiling and mentally willing her heart to still. What that an attack of some sort? That sudden surge of adrenalin and happiness, the way her heart stumbled and sped up. Whatever it was, it was not normal. Maybe she should go look it up in the medical books in the Uchiha archive tomorrow or maybe she could go and ask Sai. Yeah, that sounds like a great idea.

Amidst her thinking, she hadn't realized that her eyelids were already half closed and before she could do anything about it, she slipped past the borders of consciousness and into deep sleep.

…

Sasuke slept, curled up into a ball of blanket as the weak rays of light shone on his face. He squeezed his eyes shut and furrowed his brows before opening them to reveal groggy bloodshot eyes. He glanced at his alarm clock which hadn't been set. He had stopped setting alarms since Sakura arrived because that girl always seemed to wake earlier than his alarm clock and she would wake him once she's finished making breakfast.

He read the time on the clock and blinked a few times before reaching over and grabbing it. It read 11:34. Was it broken? Sakura always had breakfast done by 9:50 and he would be down in the kitchen at 10. What happened to Sakura? He threw his covers off himself and got up, as soon as he was out of the warm protection of his bed, Sasuke felt like crawling back to sleep. It had rained last night, Konoha had a fairly tropical climate, however if it rained during the night then the temperature can go down to 15 degrees.

Sasuke rubbed the back of his neck and rubbed his hands together to warm his hands. Pushing the door open, he walked out and made his way towards Sakura's room to find out if she was still there. Maybe she had left the house in the morning and forgot to tell him; somehow he couldn't help but feel slightly rejected if she had done so. He opened the door.

She had not gone out after all, instead she was sleeping on her covers. Her body was curled up like a feline, her face was contorted with discomfort as her body trembled slightly at the sudden change of breeze of air that entered her room with Sasuke's intrusion.

Sasuke frowned deeply, she didn't change into her sleepwear nor did she use her covers. With the weather from last night, he wouldn't be surprised if she had caught a cold already. He walked over to the side of the bed she was facing and grabbed her shoulder before shaking her awake. "Sakura"

Sakura's eyes shot open at the contact and lunged for the kunai at her bedside only for her fingertips to meet nothing but the cold laminated wood of her side table. She sat up quickly, her eyes hostile and ready to counter anything that was threatening her safety but only met the gentle look of Sasuke's obsidian orbs.

Sasuke had his hands raised and a cautious look on his face. "It's me" he told her. Sakura's expression softened at the familiar voice and Sasuke briefly wondered how long would it take for her to get over her defensive reaction to human contact. "Sa-" she was abruptly cut off when a cough erupted from the back of her throat and then she sneeze right away after that.

A knowing look crossed Sasuke's features. She had definitely caught a cold. He sighed and walked over to her closet "This is what happens when you sleep on your covers, it rained last night." He told her as he rummaged through her clothes and pulled out her sleepwear and threw it on her bed. "Get changed into that, I'll go make you breakfast" he said in a tone that was not to be argued with.

Sakura, however, did anyway. Throwing her legs over the bed and getting up, she tried to convince Sasuke that she was capable of continuing her routine "You don't have to do that, I can make bre-" she sneezed again. Sasuke placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her back down to sit on the bed. He shoved her pajamas into her hands.

"Get changed, Sakura. Don't make any sudden movements; if you feel light headed then lie down." Sasuke leaned down and looked her in the eye then straightened "Do as I say, Sakura" he said as he poked her lightly on the forehead for swiftly exiting the room. Sakura sat on the bed, staring into the space that Sasuke had just been standing on. Then lifted a hand to rubbed her forehead, she blinked before her lips twitched into a small smile.

There was something achingly affectionate about that little gesture, it made her heart thump. Sakura noticed with panic as her heart began to sped. Was she having an attack? But why did her stomach flutter and her head felt like. Sasuke did mention something about being light headed. It must be her condition.

Sakura stood with wobbly knees and took a careful step forward before walking towards the bathroom to get washed up and changed. By the time she had gotten out, there was a jug of water on her side table and a note that said _'I'm going out to get groceries, do not leave the room and finish the water' _

Sakura's heart fluttered again and she almost squealed with the joy that was threatening to burst from her chest. She placed a hand over her heart, trying to calm it down. Her worries were all thrown out the window when she tried to picture a domesticated Sasuke running about the kitchen. She had just realized that she had never seen him do any of the things that she does. She always assumed that keeping the house tidy was her job since she was the one freeloading off of them but she couldn't imagine what Sasuke's life was like before she came in.

She made a mental note to ask him but for now, a cool glass of water sounded like a good idea.

…

The main door opened to reveal Sasuke carrying bags full of groceries; he stepped in before promptly kicking the door close behind him. He set the bags down on the counter before heading upstairs to see if Sakura had listened to him.

He knocked once before turning the doorknob and stepping in, Sakura looked up from her book. She sat in bed with her back straight and her hand holding a book, her eyes held a heavy look and Sasuke stopped himself before he could reprimand her. He knew that this was probably the first time anyone's ever taken care of her when she was sick.

She lowered her book and offered him a welcoming smile "Welcome back, Sasuke" she said, her voice was hoarse and faint. Sasuke sighed and walked over to her, he briefly recognized the book as the very same book that had been introduced to her by the demon known as Sai. He glared sharply at the book before it was pulled from his vision. Sakura stared up at him uneasily.

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

Sasuke held his tongue from throwing out a snarky remark about her choice of reads but instead chose to rip the cursed book out of her hands anyway.

"You shouldn't be straining yourself" he told her as he pushed her down to lie down on the pillows, he placed his palm flat on her forehead to see if she had a fever. He frowned "You're burning up" he told her briefly before glancing at her jug of water. It was half empty. He reached for it to refill it and turned to leave the room but not before throwing Sakura a stern look over his shoulder before he walked out the door. "Sleep" he told her.

Sakura heard the door clicked close and suddenly she felt exhausted. She guessed she hadn't realized it when she had been too immersed in reading. Her bones felt stiff and achy and her body felt like it was being cooked under the sun. She eventually fell asleep nonetheless, but the suffocating heat underneath the blankets was urging her to throw them off. Sakura groaned in her sleep and tossed and turned in her bed.

Her brows were furrowed and her eyes were shut tight as she moved around underneath the heavy covers to try and find a more comfortable position. She felt something cold on her forehead, instantly relieving some of the heat from her system. Her body stilled and her breathing evened out, although her breaths were still deep. Sasuke had never seen Sakura move so much in her sleep, but was glad that he remembered to use the cooling pad.

…

Sakura was awakened by mouth-watering scent that drifted from the half opened door. She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes before touching the foreign material pasted on her forehead. She peeled it off and examined it. It was warm but her forehead felt cooler than before. She briefly wondered if it was for that effect. She decided that she would ask Sasuke about it. Pushing the blankets away from her, she threw her legs over the side of the bed and stood up. She didn't move as she allowed the light-headed feeling to pass. She wobbled over to the door and leaned against the door frame while she tried to gain back her breathing. Once she felt her heartbeat pick up its momentum, she walked down the hall with a little more confidence that she won't collapse onto the floor.

Pots and pans clanged as Sasuke dropped them into the sink. On the table, Sakura spotted a bowl of steaming porridge sitting right in the middle. Sakura's stomach growled at the scent, announcing her presence to Sasuke. Looking up from the dishes, Sasuke cast a surprised look at her.

"You're awake" he blinked then frowned as he traced her gaze to the bowl of hot porridge. "You shouldn't be out of bed; I would've brought it up to you." He reprimanded her.

Sakura all but cast him a tired smile. He sighed and walked over to her, directing her over to the table. "Sit down" he told her and she obeyed.

"Stay here" he told her and then disappeared upstairs.

Sakura sat on the chair, swinging her legs and examining the porridge. Moments later Sasuke appeared from upstairs with a blanked in his arms. He unfolded it and wrapped it carefully around Sakura and then pushed the porridge towards her. Sakura snuggled tighter in her blanket as Sasuke took a seat beside her. She smiled warmly at him, "You seem to be used to taking care of people, Sasuke" she said.

Sasuke looked away and rubbed the back of his neck "Not really, it's just that my brother always took care of me this way" he confessed.

He snuck a glance at her to find her curiously examining the cooling pad in her hands. "That's a cooling pad" he state.

Sakura played her fingers on the sticky substance of the pad "So that's what it's called" she said absently.

Sasuke snorted and reached out to take it from her "I'll take that. Eat your porridge before it cools" however she pulled it from his reach as her eyes lit with an idea. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her mischievous look and before he could say anything, she had pasted the used cooling pad on the side of the bowl of porridge.

He twitched. "Sakura, what are you doing?"

Sakura torn her eyes from the steam and looked up at Sasuke "If I stick it here, would the porridge cool faster?"

Sasuke sighed and peeled the pad off the side of the bowl and out of Sakura's reach before she gets distracted by it again. "Ah." Sakura stared dejectedly at her now pad-less bowl of porridge. Her stomach growled as Sasuke made his way to the kitchen to dispose the cooling pad.

He turned back and shot her a stern look "Eat"

Sakura blinked twice before smiling to herself and digging in to her lunch.

…

_The general is a very dark person. Viewed as a political figure and yet no one on the board actually trusts him; I know why. He schemes behind the Hokage's back, issuing infiltration missions and assassinations of figures from other villages to the ROOT members, I'm one of them. We're shinobi trained in secret by the general, this program was supposedly terminated long ago however the general brought it back, he worries for the military standing of Konoha and uses us to provide the veil of peace that covers our village. We're training only to act on his command and no one else's—not even the Hokage's. _

_This time, it appears he has an important task for me. How do I know this?— because he's entrusted this to me. Unlike some of the members of ROOT, I was born into the program and I was often praised for my apathetic way of obeying orders. I do no ask questions and I require no answer, I simply need the command._

"_I've been waiting for an opportunity like this for almost a decade now, as I thought, the younger one is much easier to get to. He makes much too many mistakes—unlike his brother." He turns sharply to look at me "Do not ruin this for me"_

_He says this but I don't recall having ever failed a mission. I keep my gaze straight as he circles me, my mind runs through the various methods I could use to fulfil my mission as I keep the other half of my mind in attention to the general's words. _

"_I want all the information you can gather on Young Sasuke and if possible, I want you to unravel his weakest emotional link. Do not leave out any details; I want a full written report every week starting today." _

"_Yes, General Danzo"_

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**I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, I know it's a little choppy and I'm sorry for that but I'll try my best to update against soon. Please with patient with me XD and leave a review if you're not too annoyed with me ;_;**

**Random question~**

**Would you guys prefer Kakashi-Anko pairing or Kakashi-Shizune pairing? :3**


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